Written by PETA
If you're as big a fan of Whale Wars as I am, you probably already have a pretty good idea of the evil that is whaling. For those of you who can't afford cable, suffice it to say that the Japanese continue to kill hundreds of whales every year under the guise of "research"—except that they also happen to have a thriving business in the sale of whale flesh and other whale products. Hmmm … sounds pretty fishy (or should I say "sea-kitteny"?) to me.
Do we have to paint a picture for you? No worries—our good friends over at Experience Project already have. Check out their short but extremely powerful video on whaling here:
If you can watch it without reaching for a hanky, you are a stronger person than I am. While there, you can also take a minute to put your John Hancock on a letter to President Obama urging him to stand by his campaign promise to strengthen the international ban on whaling (which the Japanese and Norwegians are pretty much thumbing their noses at).
Written by Alisa Mullins
Well, you gotta give the guy points for trying. Courageous Canadian Senator Mac Harb introduced a bill on Tuesday to ban Canada's annual slaughter of hundreds of thousands of baby harp seals, but he failed to find even one other senator with a backbone (or heartbeat) to support it. Despite the fact that most Canadians—and everyone else on the planet—think that the baby seal massacre is as revolting and indefensible as, well, clubbing a baby human and stealing his or her candy, Canadian government officials, who apparently live in sound-proof igloos, inexplicably continue to defend it.
Senator Harb's bill marks the first—but hopefully not the last—time that a Canadian politician has proposed banning the seal slaughter. It was inspired by a pending EU ban on the importation and sale of most seal products. Even Russia—Russia, people!—is poised to ban its own seal hunt, which Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has described as "such a bloody hunt, and it is clear that it should have been banned a long time ago." Yes, Vladimir "Tiger Tamer" Putin. That Putin.
Canada, when Russia starts making you look like a big, blustering bully, you know you've got an image problem.
While most of us would never dream of bashing in a helpless baby seal's skull, there are people out there who don't even think twice about it. More than 205,000 seals were killed last year in Canada's annual seal massacre, which is why we sent a "baby seal" to Ottawa, Ontario, to ask the locals for hugs instead of clubs. Check out these photos to see PETA's baby seal in action:
Want to help stop the Canadian seal slaughter? Let the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Organizing Committee know how you feel here and ask your friends to do the same.
Written by Lianne Turner
Yesterday, PETA held a press conference in Vancouver to announce our ramped-up campaign against the Canadian seal slaughter. We'll be running the campaign up to and through the 2010 Olympic Winter Games, which will be held in the city. Our goal is to switch some of the focus from Canada's Games to Canada's shame—the annual massacre of hundreds of thousands of baby seals. To illustrate the worldwide outrage over Canada's despicable seal slaughter, our international affiliates also held protests in Australia and France yesterday.
Another year has come and gone, and still our snow-covered neighbor to the north continues to back the annual massacre of baby seals—the largest and bloodiest marine-mammal hunt on Earth. With the start of Canada's seal slaughter only weeks away, we held a press conference in front of Vancouver City Hall to kick off our campaign to stop sealers from bashing the heads of hundreds of thousands of baby seals.
Vancouver will be home to the 2010 Olympic Winter Games, which will put Canada on center stage for much of the coming year, and we plan to put its shameful hunt there, too, for all the world to scrutinize. We have written to the Vancouver Olympic Organizing Committee asking for their help with persuading government officials to outlaw the hunt.
There's no word yet on Prime Minister Stephen Harper's reaction to our press conference, but he can be sure that we will continue to be a thorn in his side until he puts an end to the bloody seal slaughter once and for all.
Written by Jennifer Cierlitsky
Every year in Canada, over 330,000 harp seals are bludgeoned to death as the world looks on in horror. Recently, opposition to this cruel industry has been mounting and the international community is speaking out against this bloody massacre. Belgium and the Netherlands have passed laws banning the importation of seal fur, and the E.U. is turning its back on seal skin. Here in the U.S., the sale of seal fur has been banned since 1972.
In an attempt to save this industry, Canada has implemented new standards aimed at making the hunt more humane, including the following:
Talk about setting the bar low.
I'm sorry, but impaling baby animals in the jaw with hooks, dragging them across the ice, and throwing them into a pile where they choke on their own blood before skinning them for the sake of fashion does not fit anyone's definition of "humane." These laws are a pathetic attempt to misguide shoppers, but the industry is not changing at all. Canada, if you really want to improve the lives of seals, won't you please ban the seal hunt immediately?
Written by Liz Graffeo
Racism, slaughter, skinning … this video has it all—all things inhumane and barbaric, that is.
In a shocking new video released by our pals across the pond at PETA Europe, some bear-skinners recently got their five minutes of fame when, unbeknownst to them, they were videotaped cutting the skin off a black bear and spitting out racial slurs that will have their own mothers dodging their phone calls this holiday season.
You can view this footage below, but please be forewarned: The images and language are graphic.
These pin-head hunters sell bear hides at the very same auction where the British Ministry of Defense buys furs to make the Queen's Guards' caps. Now, you might think that the Queen is simply unaware of the cruelty sewn into each cap, but that's hogwash. PETA Europe has joined forces with top British celebs such as Ricky Gervais and Lucy Davis about this issue. Even Pink has gotten into the mix, sending the Queen a letter expressing outrage over her support for the slaughter of Canadian black bears.
There is no excuse for racism and there is no excuse for the Queen to support the killing of black bears for their fur. The Ministry of Defense needs to stop dragging its heels and make the switch to faux. Until the change is made, the Queen's Guards' caps will be symbols of cruelty at its worst. One way to help is to send a message to Canada's Prime Minster and demand that he ban the practice of bear-baiting.
Movie fans can have a White Christmas (if they like sentiment) or a Black Christmas (if they like horror). Music fans can enjoy a "Blue Christmas." Now, fans of animal protection can have a Grey Christmas—as in greyhounds.
That's right. What could be a better gift this holiday season than to learn about the bankruptcy and closure of another greyhound racing park, this one in Hinsdale, New Hampshire (just two left in New Hampshire now! Come on team, let's stop them both next!). More than a half-century of animal abuse in Hinsdale—first horses, then dogs—will come to an end. Who wouldn't want to find that under the tree? (Or, better yet, for eight nights over Hanukkah!)
Now, some of you may be thinking, "What's the big deal? Don't greyhounds love to run?" Here's the 411: Dogs who are used in races spend most of their days stuck in cramped cages or kennels and suffer other abuses, just for a few minutes on a track during a race. Thousands of greyhounds are killed each year before they ever touch a racetrack, and many more will be killed when they fail to "perform." Injuries and sickness, including broken legs, heatstroke, and heart attacks, claim the lives of many more.
In fact, few dogs make it to the supposed "retirement' age of 4 or 5, and only a fraction of the discarded dogs are placed in homes through greyhound adoption groups. The rest may be killed or sold to laboratories. To learn more, check this out. So yeah, still think they "love to run?"
The Hinsdale closure comes after the park had already cut back on the number of racing days due to "falling attendance." Clearly, people are getting the picture about dog and horse racing and staying away. Yet some folks are trying to prop up the racing industry by putting slot machines at tracks to lure more people. Um, hello? Wouldn't it make more sense to just open a casino and do away with racing altogether (as the good people of Massachusetts recently approved).
Let's end dog- and horse-racing. 'Tis the season!
Written by Jeff Mackey
Bet you thought Santa only came once a year. Well, don't be too sure! PETA's "Sexy Santas" are making the rounds to let fur-wearers know that they're on our naughty list this year. Check us out at these anti-fur demos handing out free candy canes and info on the horrors of fur, leather, and wool.
Some holiday shoppers might be wondering what the problem is with a little fur, but luckily our sexy Santa is here to educate them. Anyone who thinks it's OK to wear the product of innocent lives deserves a little more than a stocking full of coal, if you ask me! Hopefully some compassionate shoppers will decide to go "Ho, ho, faux" this year and give an early Christmas gift to animals on fur farms.
Speaking of the horrors of the fur industry, someone should let fur hag Donna Karan know about the torture that goes into her clothes (oh, right, we did). Check out our brand new Donna Karan Bunny Butcher site to learn more about our campaign!
We're so proud to launch our new Web site: DonnaKaranBunnyButcher.com. By going back on her promise to shed fur from her collection (twice!), Donna Karan has made it clear that she's OK with the electrocutions, neglect, confinement, suffocation, and death that go on in factory farms. In response, we've shown up at her apartment, her fashion shows, and her runways to remind her that animals are skinned alive for her designs. Now, we've stepped it up and launched a full interactive Web site to educate her customers about this cruel abuse.
If you like the campaign site as much as we do, then you're probably wondering what you can do to help us reach more people. Well, guess what? The site is loaded with online elements such as Web banners that you can post and videos that you can stream. So go ahead and show your love of bunnies by posting one of these Web banners to your Web page or online profile:
The site also has three heartbreaking videos that I strongly encourage you to watch and share. They will change your life, and they're guaranteed to make fur wearers change their ways. Use the code below to begin changing people's minds now.
And to all our MySpace friends: Keep an eye out for our new "Donna Karan Bunny Butcher" layouts coming soon!
So, check out DonnaKaranBunnyButcher.com and be sure to share the site with everyone you know. Oh, and here is the link with Donna Karan's contact information—please be sure to send her a polite letter and let her know what you think of her use of fur. For inspiration before you sit down to write, check out our "Ever Heard a Bunny Scream?" video.
If you have a general question for PETA and would like a response, please e-mail Info@peta.org. If you need to report cruelty to an animal, please click here. If you are reporting an animal in imminent danger and know where to find the animal and if the abuse is taking place right now, please call your local police department. If the police are unresponsive, please call PETA immediately at 757-622-7382 and press 2.
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