What makes one human?
1. Biological integrity, I feel, is the most defining part of a human. The health of the body and mind affect each other, and their mechanisms and materials determine the function. Who you are, in large part, grows out of what you are. To consciously alter or manipulate it's basic functions is to degrade your very being. Genetic material, the blueprints from which your body is built, is the most basic biological component, and to consciously alter or manipulate that is to degrade the entire species.
2. The mind. Thought processes, grown out of your biological component, and shaped by environment. To forcefully alter the mind of another is to remove all dignity they have, a terrible fate.
The brain, being both a biological organ and the center of thought, is the single most important part of a human.
I, for one, believe that all sentients sapients (yeah, I made that mistake, too,) should be treated equally. Period. Humans are only special because we've not found anything else sapient. Neil deGrasse Tyson said it best, though. Our search for life in space is kind of like scooping a cupful of water out of the ocean and declaring that there's nothing in the oceans because there are no whales in the cup.
I believe that friendly cooperation with other sapient species could be great, and benefit all factions involved. But if it comes down to "them or us", I'm going to side with us. Because, often unfortunately, you have to choose a side. And I choose my side. Hopefully, it would not come to such a situation.
so many ninjas.