March 20, 2025

The Right to Happiness: Commentary by Alfred the Feline Animal Rights Ambassador

Alfred

Just Access Animal Rights Ambassador

Right to happiness, right to be happy, happiness, international day of happiness, human rights, human right to happiness, right to play, right to housing, right to health, right to the highest obtainable standard of living, right to a healthy environment, cat, cat’s life.

Could a cat's life help us understand happiness and human rights?

Humans talk a lot about the feeling of happiness: what makes them happy, who makes them happy, and how they can be happier. It is a complex emotion that I think a lot of people have trouble expressing or understanding. But I wonder, have they ever thought about asking a cat about what happiness is? I feel I may be a specialist on the matter as I grew up in precarious conditions, was adopted by a kind family, and am now a professional napper and Animal Rights Ambassador at Just Access. This unique perspective has allowed me to blend my life experiences with my understanding of rights to explore what happiness means, and why everyone is deserving of it.

Back in 2012, the General Assembly of the United Nations proclaimed the 20th of March as the International Day of Happiness. The objective was to have a day to recognise the importance of happiness and well-being as a universal goal for all people and prioritise it within policy decision making. While having a day dedicated to happiness is an important step, there is still a lot of work to do to make this an everyday reality for all. Happiness is built on a foundation of rights, and without these rights being protected and exercised, it remains out of reach for many.

The idea of happiness is not just a feeling; it is deeply tied to human rights.

Looking at my own life, I get to make use of so many rights every single day without even realising it. This leads me to the question: could human rights be as simple as a cat’s life? Let me take you through my day and show you how these rights have helped me live a happy life.

As a cat who sleeps eighteen hours a day, I know how essential the right to rest is. Nobody is forcing me to stay awake or work when I am tired. However, there are many who do not get to enjoy this right, including my humans as four o’clock in the morning is my prime waking hour (oops). Contributing factors like homelessness, overworking, chronic health conditions, and much more can prevent people from getting proper sleep. Yet, chronic sleep deprivation is linked to increases in both physical and mental health risks. Without proper rest, our physical and emotional well-being suffer, making it difficult to fully experience happiness.

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After my long and leisurely naps, all I do is meow at my humans, as I have the right to freedom of expression, and then food appears for me, as I have a right to food. I don’t have to go through the day feeling hungry (despite some dramatics making it seem like I constantly am – shh, don’t tell!).

In addition, I have a warm place to call home, and a safe place to be taken care of. I spent the first half of my life in a hoarding home with fifty other cats and, following that, in a busy shelter for many months. When I compare how I felt then to how I feel now, being able to enjoy the right to housing in addition to the right to a standard of living adequate for my health and well-being has contributed significantly to my feelings of happiness. Yet, many are denied these essential rights, especially those living in low–income countries, where almost 700 million people are living in extreme poverty. Advocacy efforts for policies that prioritise these rights and more worldwide are essential to safeguard the potential for the right to happiness for all.

To foster happiness around the globe, we need to advocate for basic human rights to be respected and protected, especially for those who are most vulnerable.

With my basic needs met (rest, food, water, and shelter), one of the most fulfilling ways I find happiness in my day is through play, as I have the right to leisure. From chasing a ball of yarn, pursuing a robot vacuum, or playing with humans and other animals, I regularly get to enjoy play.

Everyone deserves fun and leisure time; however, many are often denied this right, especially children. Despite the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, which guarantees the right of the child to rest, leisure, and engage in play, over one-fifth of children in the world’s lowest-income countries are forced into child labour, depriving them of this fundamental human right. I am a cat who enjoys this right, and every child should, too.

As you can see, the idea of happiness is not just a feeling; it is deeply tied to human rights. To truly foster happiness around the globe, we need to advocate for these basic rights to be accessible and enforced for all, especially for those most vulnerable. For this International Day of Happiness, let’s practice our freedom of expression and advocate for policies and laws that prioritise the right to happiness for everyone. So, what can we do to ensure that happiness is a right for all, and not just a privilege that few get to experience?

The theme for the 2025 International Day of Happiness is ‘Caring and Sharing.’ It highlights the necessity of caring for each other, creating connections, and being interconnected within a community. On this day, I encourage you to think about the right to happiness, and the ways you can spread happiness. Whether it is by acting locally (for example, by adopting an animal at your local shelter) or globally (such as by donating to a human rights NGO), being intentional to care and to share will help make this world a brighter place, where everyone’s rights can be enjoyed as much as I enjoy mine.