A Vampire's Rights

It would be interesting to consider, hypothetically, what a vampire's rights would be like. There are some considerations. For one, a vampire is clearly ex-human, in that it is a dead human creature and most certainly has different characteristics and needs from your average human. Yet, those needs will make consideration of a vampire's rights quite interesting, as treating one just like a dead person would be clearly insufficient seeing as this particular dead person happens to be walking (or flying, or floating, or scampering) around like a living creature.

The easy solution, as seen in Dracula, would be simply to regard vampires as a menace that should be eliminated. As such, they'd probably be classed as a sort of rather dangerous vermin. However, if one were to try to engineer rights to afford integration of vampires into human society, things get considerably more complicated. That would mean that vampires are to be granted the same rights and responsibilities accorded to humans: the right to live without harm as long as one does not harm others.

Another basic consideration would be sustenance. As a vampire feeds on blood (presumably not exclusively human blood), that would count as the food source. The right of access to food does not actually exist in many societies: in fact, they are quite content to starve those who cannot afford food. Economics would dictate that vampires likewise be required to pay for their food.

Lodging is even more critical for a vampire than a human, seeing as vamps have a fatal sun allergy. Even if economics dictate that they pay for their homes the way humans do, they'd at least need a coffin to keep them alive. Survival as a basic right, after all.