@Zanavy @Crystal AmalgamHonestly, I've been kind of making up the history and lore as we go. Feel free to share your thoughts and ideas. But right now, this is how I imagine it....
Humans lost their place as dominant species probably around the fall of the Roman Empire (a human civilization). This is approximately the time most animal species had reached average human level intelligence, which
was the humans species' greatest advantage.
Animals retained many of their best adaptations, natural weapons, defenses, and senses. In comparison, humans were blind, deaf, and nose blind, and defenseless without weapons. Many human civilizations fell to other apex predators such as wolves, big cats, and larger primates.
Humans still tend to turn out the greatest minds--that is, scientists, philosophers, inventors, and the like. The human ability to create technology is what has kept humans one step ahead of the rest. This is why humans still make up about 1/10 of the earth's humanoid population, despite the vast number of different humanoid species that exist.
As a whole, humans tend to be more sickly than other animals. They have more sedentary lifestyles, eat more unnatural, processed foods, and partake more often in drugs and alcohol. Human curiosity has also resulted in a greater number of diseases and illnesses due to human experimentation and accidental release of different virus and bacteria.
Many species simply find humans unattractive due to their skin, which makes their sickliness more apparent. Human blemishes, such as pimples, bruises, moles, bug bites, and scars, are easily seen on bare skin.
But I digress. Human hate began with the enslavement and farming of intelligent animals. While they were not the only species guilty of it, they were the species who practiced it the most. The hatred has been perpetuated by the evil acts of many human individuals and groups, and made worse by the use of animal propaganda.
Humans are most common in China, Japan, and Germany. In these countries, humans are highly regarded and other animal species are second class citizens. Africa, South America, and the Middle East are primarily ruled by big cats, and humans are looked down upon. In most other parts of the world, humans are less common and are usually viewed on the same level as other animals. The United States perhaps has the greatest mix of animal species in the world and it has been a role model in the fight for equality.
In US history, humans have usually been the enemy. The Revolutionary War was primarily faught against humans, the Confederates in the Civil War were mostly human, and the Nazi were mostly human. Despite this, many early leaders of the country were human. Today, humans still have the same right as every other animal in the country.
(I'll try to make you guys a timeline sometime soon. )
As for a Human/Animal History Class, that sounds like a good idea. =) Go for it!