Nothing says "all-American" quite like the mass slaughter of animals, right? Um, yeah—didn't think so. These chic-with-a-beak supporters and several other friends to chickens hit the streets outside the McCruelty-sponsored All American Basketball Games during rush hour in Columbus, Ohio, yesterday. They were urging passersby to boycott McDonald's fowl fouls and petition the company to switch to suppliers that use "controlled-atmosphere killing" (CAK), a humane play that would eliminate many of the worst abuses suffered by chickens at slaughter.

People outraged by McCruelty are signing up to host McCruelty demos in their cities, while others are pushing for Ronald's retirement. Which will you choose?

Written by Logan Scherer

The recent theft of bleachers from Chicago's Orr High School has left students without seating and robbed them of their school spirit. "It felt good to be out there beating on the drum, rooting the team on. All the people from the community coming to support us and everything. And now you wake up and all the seats are gone," said one student.

Well, PETA has just the thing to raise morale at Orr High and the community's awareness of the suffering that's endured by chickens who are killed for McNuggets. We're offering the school $5,000 and a veggie-burger lunch in exchange for placing this McCruelty ad on its new bleachers:

If there's one thing rivaling teams and fans can agree on, it's that scalding chickens in defeathering tanks is a real fumble. By spreading the message that McDonald's needs to push its suppliers to adopt controlled-atmosphere killing (CAK)—a less cruel method of slaughtering chickens—Orr High could rally for chickens every day of the week.

Written by Logan Scherer

© Star Max Inc.

While at the premiere of Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married Too? the stars were asked to spill about their favorite restaurants. Janet Jackson, who not only stars in the movie but whose new track, "Nothing," is on the movie's soundtrack, said, "I go to Café Sunflower. It's a vegan restaurant. Everything is good there. It really is. And there's another vegan restaurant called Veggieland—very good," while her costar Cicely Tyson proudly declared, "I'm a vegan—a vegetarian."

So now, not only do I want to see the movie, I want to sample Atlanta's cruelty-free fare. Thanks, ladies.

Written by Logan Scherer

"I can only think of sex, sex, and more sex. The dirtier the better!"
—Judge Bruno Tonioli on Pamela Anderson's first Dancing With the Stars performance

You know you've awed the hard-to-please Dancing With the Stars judges when Bruno is so tongue-tied that he can't even come up with innuendo. Our response to Pamela's cha-cha-cha with partner Damian Whitewood? Ooo-la-lah!

This stunner will always get our seal of approval (and our vote), and we can't wait to see what she comes up with on the dance floor tonight. Don't forget to go to ABC's Web site and vote for Pamela tonight.

Written by Logan Scherer

This is a handsome bullock named Houshya. He is—or, rather, was—a working bullock in India. "Working" for him meant spending 18 long years pulling a heavy cart loaded with bricks, oil drums, or whatever other goods his impoverished family was paid to move. But now, Houshya (which means "Hush!") is old and tired, and he no longer has the strength to pull the heavy loads along the pitted dirt roads as quickly as he once did. His owner considered selling him but knew that it wouldn't be long before Houshya slowed down so much that his new owner would send him to the slaughterhouse to be killed for his meat and skin.

So even though the deeply poor family could have used the money from selling Houshya, they agreed that it wouldn't be right and sacrificed their income in order to save him. He has now been donated to Animal Rahat, where he will spend the rest of his life in retirement, under a shade tree, grazing and drinking water at will. He will also be given vitamins to help ease him into old age. The look on his face shows that he can't quite believe his new life!

Already, his nose rope, which has left its mark, has been replaced with a fine white halter. Piercing animals' nostrils is painful, and over time the rope cuts into the bull's sensitive skin.

Animal Rahat—a PETA-supported organization that provides veterinary care to working animals in India—is one of PETA President Ingrid E. Newkirk's favorite projects. She recently traveled to India and paid a visit to Sangli, where Animal Rahat works hard to provide relief for bullocks like Houshya who toil long days hauling goods ranging from sugar cane to gasoline. You can read more about her trip on her blog, and you can help these gentle animals by making a donation to Animal Rahat.

Written by Alisa Mullins

© Star Max Inc.

"Well, there was a time when we used to sacrifice goats, but then we all became vegans, so we've been sacrificing tofu before the shows!"
—Jared Leto on 30 Seconds to Mars' rock star lifestyle

Jared Leto is a heartthrob. Ever since blue-eyed Jordan Catalano caught Angela's eye on My So-Called Life, I've been captivated (don't lie, so have you). Since then, I've followed him from Prefontaine to 30 Seconds to Mars. Now that Jared and the rest of his band are vegan (and so are their pre-performance rituals), I'm hoping my "Tofu Never Screams" tee will help me score backstage passes at their next show.

Written by Shawna Flavell

Update: On Saturday, March 27, Utah's governor signed the bill into law, formally amending the state's pound-seizure law. This means that animal shelters are no longer required to turn over animals for use in cruel experiments. Hooray!

Thanks in large part to e-mails, letters, and phone calls from thousands of compassionate supporters, Utah legislators voted by an overwhelming majority to amend a state law so that government-run animal shelters will not be forced to sell dogs and cats to laboratories for use in cruel and deadly experiments upon request. Once the governor signs the bill, Utah will no longer have the dubious distinction of being one of only three states in the country that still mandate that animal shelters engage in this shameful practice. The new law also lengthens the required holding period for animals in shelters and mandates that shelters make greater efforts to find the guardians of lost animals.

These positive changes come on the heels of a recent PETA undercover investigation inside laboratories at the University of Utah. The shocking investigation revealed that each year, more than 100 homeless cats and dogs from government-run animal shelters in Utah are sold to the university for use in invasive, painful, and deadly experiments. In one instance, the university bought a pregnant cat from a local animal shelter and injected chemicals into her kitten's brains, causing fluid to build up inside their heads. All the kittens died.

With this new law, companion animals in Utah—and the people who care for them—can rest a little easier.

Please take a moment to contact the University of Utah and urge it to stop buying animals from animal shelters once and for all.

Written by Shawna Flavell

Road trips remind me of a better decade, when poodle skirts and pompadours were in fashion. So when I'm on the open road, Elvis croons from my stereo and the iconic Sonic drive-thru diner is a must on the list of pit stops.

cravingstogo / CC

And now I have another reason to cruise on up to Sonic besides its seriously addictive limeade. The company just agreed to begin purchasing eggs and to double the amount of meat it purchases from suppliers that use less cruel production methods. Under its new animal welfare policy, Sonic will take the following actions:

• The company will urge its chicken suppliers to convert to "controlled-atmosphere killing" (CAK)—the less cruel method of bird slaughter—or will favor suppliers that convert to CAK systems.
• It will begin phasing in the purchase of "cage-free" eggs from suppliers that don't cram their hens into cages, and it plans to increase the percentage of "cage-free" eggs annually.
• Sonic will double its purchase of "crate-free" pig meat from suppliers that don't confine pregnant sows to cruel gestation crates that restrict nearly all movement.

With the new policy, Sonic adds its voice to those calling for less cruel slaughter methods that will prevent thousands of chickens from suffering broken bones and dying in scalding-hot defeathering tanks—and it will mean more humane living conditions for sows. The company has set an example that we hope other chains will follow. Of course, our offers to meet with execs from McDonald's and KFC still stand.

Written by Karin Bennett

When rock deity Chrissie Hynde says "I'll Stand By You," she really means it.

When we told Hynde that we were resurrecting our McCruelty campaign, she pulled out all the stops, starting by unveiling her new "i'm hatin' it" ad in Salt Lake City, where throngs of people were thrilled to see the powerful image. But the folks at Cleveland Outdoor Advertising weren't so thrilled when we submitted the Ohio native's ad to them as a billboard. According to PETA's advertising agent, Cleveland Outdoor Advertising "didn't feel comfortable" with the ad.

Well, often the truth isn't comfortable, and in this case it's painful—scalding, actually. The chickens who are killed by McDonald's suppliers are dumped onto conveyer belts, shackled upside down, and then run through an electrically charged "stun bath" before their throats are cut and they are immersed in defeathering tanks full of scalding-hot water—often while they are still conscious and able to feel pain. Join Chrissie Hynde in urging McDonald's to make it suppliers adopt controlled-atmosphere killing, a less cruel method of slaughter. It would cost the corporation nothing to ask its suppliers to make the switch, which would spare millions of chickens from enduring extreme suffering.

Written by Logan Scherer

Last year's McDonald's Thanksgiving Parade in Chicago was chock-full of behemoth balloon characters and live entertainment (was that the cast of Jersey Boys I saw serenading their way down State Street?), but something was missing …

Wait, I know! Where was the killer clown? Considering that McDonald's refuses to adopt controlled-atmosphere killing (CAK)—the less cruel slaughter method that would spare birds from having their throats cut while they're still conscious and from being scalded alive—no parade sponsored by the fast-food fiend would be complete without a bloodstained float full of terrified birds being butchered by "Raging Ronnie," the grand marshal of gore. That's why we recently submitted a request to sponsor the following float in this year's parade:

This float idea? I'm totally lovin' it. No word yet on what the parade organizers think. While we're waiting for an answer, tell us about an animal rights–themed float that you would like to see in a major parade …

Written by Amy Elizabeth