As people around the world—from the Pope to Angelina Jolie—voice outrage over a Florida church's plan to publically burn copies of the Quran on September 11, PETA has a novel idea: How about bringing peas to the table? That's why we plan to erect this billboard in Gainesville, Florida:

The billboard's peasful arrangement of different religious symbols promotes tolerance and nonviolence regardless of race, faith, or species, a message that's pretty apt when people are fighting hammer and tongs over the burning of the Muslim holy book, the plans to build a Muslim community center near Ground Zero, and a recent arson at the site of a mosque under construction in Tennessee.

Just like humans who are victimized for being perceived as different, animals who are raised and killed for food would be left in peace if it weren't for human ignorance, prejudice, and bigotry. On factory farms, piglets are castrated and have their tails cut off without being given any painkillers, cows are often dismembered and skinned while they're still able to feel pain, and chickens and turkeys—who have never hurt anyone in their lives, but who feel pain just as humans do—have their throats cut while they're still conscious.

But there is something that everyone can do to reduce the total amount of violence in the world. We can choose meals that did not involve terror, disrespect, and killing. And though we can't bring back those we lost on that horrific day nine years ago, each of us can save more than 100 lives this year alone just by going vegetarian—or better yet, vegan.

As PETA president Ingrid Newkirk said in her talk on nonviolence in Palestine at Christmas a few years ago, "One day, people will stop saying 'Respect me, I'm a human being,' and say 'Respect me, I'm a living being.'"

Please give peas and veggie burgers a chance by pledging to go vegan today.

Written by Amy Skylark Elizabeth

According to an article in The Guardian, many Muslims are choosing to break their daily fast during this month of Ramadan with meaty meals.

Nothing could be more contrary to Islamic teachings, which call on all Muslims to respect animals, the environment, and human health, than today's cruel and toxic factory farms and the hazardous foods that they produce. With controversy raging over the planned Islamic community center near Manhattan's Ground Zero, The Guardian offers a useful reminder that for people of all faiths (or of no faith), an effective way to incorporate peace into daily practice is to adopt a nonviolent diet.

Written by Jeff Mackey

While we here in the States are focused on recently discovered godly gluten, the folks at PETA Germany have offered the Catholic Church the "Veggie-Shroud" to fill the void when the Shroud of Turin is retired on Sunday.

Debate abounds over the authenticity of the Shroud of Turin, but there's no mystery surrounding the powerful message put forth by the clearly defined slaughtered pig depicted in the "Veggie-Shroud": Animals who end up on a dinner plate "died for the diet sins of mankind."

While we wait to find out whether the Catholic Church will agree to display the "Veggie Shroud," won't you urge everyone you know to find savory salvation from the universal cruelty and unholy unhealthiness of flesh-based diets? Catholics, atheists, Muslims, and people of all faiths and views are coming together to say, "Praise Seitan!"

Written by Karin Bennett

I'm going to be frank—after a minute and a half of GAIA's latest undercover video footage from a halal slaughterhouse in Belgium, I had to stop watching. But while I was able to hit a pause button, the more than 250,000 cows, sheep, and goats who are slaughtered while they are still conscious must endure prolonged torment. Animals killed halal (according to Islamic law) cannot be stunned before their throats are cut, which means that many animals—including the cow shown in this video—fight and gasp for their last breath, struggling to stand while the blood drains from their necks.

Belgium forbids slaughter without prior stunning, but the law does not apply to ritual slaughter practices, even though much of the halal meat produced in the country is distributed both to religious and nonreligious markets. Islamic teachings encourage kindness and compassion toward all creatures, which is why many Muslims make the humane decision to go vegan. Visit IslamicConcern.com to learn more about cruelty-free alternatives to halal meat.

Written by Logan Scherer

Ace—a kind, shy pit bull—was chained outside 24/7. The area where he lived was worn, there was not a single blade of grass within sniffing distance, and he was living in a plastic barrel that offered minimal shelter from the elements. After a bloody encounter with another dog, Ace was left with swollen and infected genitals, and his neglectful "owner" let the painful sores go untreated for more than a month.

A concerned complainant first reported Ace's plight to local law-enforcement officials, who refused to help. When we received the initial call about Ace, we got a similar and frustrating run-around from officials, who assured us that the dog was "fine."

By the following morning, our persistent efforts to secure help for Ace resulted in getting a qualified animal control officer dispatched to Ace's Alabama home. Once the officer arrived on the scene, it was obvious that Ace was not "fine," and he was immediately seized. The untreated infection had taken its toll on Ace, and when he arrived at the local animal shelter, he was finally given a humane release from his prolonged suffering.

In addition to suffering through sweltering heat and blistering cold, dogs like Ace, who are forced to spend their lives at the end of a lonely chain, are susceptible to violent encounters with other animals. Chained dogs often become fearful of intruders and overly protective of their tiny patches of ground. This can encourage unnaturally aggressive behavior that often has tragic results for the animals and people who go near them. If you know of or see an injured or neglected chained dog, please take action.

Written by Logan Scherer

What's a person to do when her one-woman demonstration against a traveling exotic animal act brings out a band of bullies? Follow Bridgette Brady's lead: hold her sign—and her head—even higher.

Bridgette, who stays busy helping homeless dogs and cats in Escanaba, Michigan, was determined to educate city residents about Joe "Exotic" Schreibvogal, the man behind GW Exotic Animal Memorial Park. When Schreibvogal brought his menagerie of miserable animals, "Mystical Magic of the Endangered" to her local mall, Bridgette set up a protest outside. The sign she held as she stood there was so simple—"Joe 'Exotic'-fined $25,000 for animal abuse by the USDA!"—but Bridgette claims that it riled up the show's workers and that they surrounded her and tried to intimidate her.

Did she retreat? Nope—quite the opposite. The vegan morning radio show host has stepped up her efforts to ensure that exotic animal acts are forever banned in her town. In addition to writing letters to editors and staging protests, Bridgette, who's also vice president of the City Planning Commission, is now working to pass a local ordinance to ban exotic or endangered animal acts.

For her relentless determination to make a difference for animals, we are delighted to present Bridgette Brady with an Outstanding Activist Award for a job well done!

Written by Karin Bennett

As a Muslim living in America, I know what it is like to be in the minority. But a recent Pew Forum study suggests that Islam is making inroads toward the cultural mainstream.

According to the survey, one in four people worldwide is Muslim, and the countries with the largest numbers of Muslims might surprise you. India, for example, whose residents are mostly Hindus, is home to the largest number of Muslims outside Indonesia and Pakistan. Russia, China, and Germany also have large Muslim populations.

In an effort to reach out to the growing Muslim community, a new Web site, IslamicConcern.com, has just launched which includes hadiths —sayings of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)—and quotations from the Qur'an and Islamic leaders about compassion for all of God's creation, including animals.

At IslamicConcern.com, people can learn about how modern factory farming techniques—such as branding animals, amputating their tails and castrating them without anesthetics, and burning off birds' beaks—seem to violate the Prophet Muhammad's (PBUH) teachings to cause no pain to an animal before she or he is slaughtered. Animals raised for food are often fed the ground-up bodies of pigs, chickens, and cattle along with chicken excrement and other waste products. Many Muslims believe this is most probably haram (forbidden).

Even if you aren't a Muslim, I encourage you to check out IslamicConcern.com. You might be interested to learn how much Islamic teachings about kindness to animals have in common with Christianity, Judaism, and other major religions.

Written by Mr. Hanif Akhtar, PETA Member