Written by PETA
In a tweet feat of epic proportions, PETA nabbed the number two spot in USA Today's #AmericaWants hash tag contest on Twitter! The great news was announced in an ad that ran in yesterday's USA Today.
Kudos to all of you who tweeted in support of PETA's campaign to stop Canada's bludgeoning of baby seals. That includes the wonderful Pink, Pamela Anderson, Channing and Jenna Tatum, Perez Hilton, and Stephanie Pratt.
But this is no time to rest on our laurels: We have to keep the pressure on the Canadian government. Hurry—while your Twitter finger is still twitching, send a tweet to Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper letting him know that the tweeps have spoken and it's time to ban the seal slaughter.
Written by Alisa Mullins
Victory Update: Following a year of vigorous campaigning, PETA has learned that government officials have grounded plans for a cruel and ineffective radiation experiment on monkeys. Learn more about this victory for monkeys.
It's World Week for Animals in Laboratories—do you know where your tweets are? Hopefully, they will soon be winging their way to NASA, with 140 characters of outrage (politely worded, of course) at its absurd plan to spend $1.75 million to bombard up to 30 squirrel monkeys with radiation and then lock them up and watch their bodies and minds deteriorate (which, based on past radiation experiments, could include blindness, brain tumors, and other types of cancer).
After you've tweeted at NASA, head on over to Lori Garver's Facebook page (she's NASA's deputy administrator) to let her know where you weigh in on the "Save the Monkeys" debate. And don't forget to link to PETA's action alert on your home page.
Then pick up the phone and give Garver (202-358-1020) and NASA Administrator Charles Bolden (202-358-1010) a call. Tell them you'd much prefer that your tax dollars be spent on modern, humane research methods that actually have some relevance to humans.
Finally, ask your congressional representative to use his or her influence to blast NASA's cruel, wasteful, and possibly illegal plan to another galaxy—preferably one with no life forms that the space agency can exploit.
Stephanie Pratt, star of MTV's The Hills, bared her own buns for the cover of PETA's new "Be Nice to Bunnies" iPhone app, a searchable database designed by Hot Frog Creative that makes it a snap for shoppers to find cruelty-free products while they're on the go. The racy cover was deemed too risqué by Apple, though (it's OK to shed a tear) so we had to replace it with a PG version. Now the only place to see the controversial ad is here.
Want to know why Stephanie only wears fake fur and products that weren't tested on animals? Watch our exclusive interview with the future (fur-free) designer:
You can also enter to win some of Stephanie's favorite cruelty-free products. We love her—and we'd love it if you'd take her advice and follow PETA on Twitter.
Written by Heather Moore
Today, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down as "overly broad" a law meant to ban the distribution of videos depicting illegal conduct such as "crush" videos, in which animals are slowly killed under a high heel or bare foot, and videos in which animals are forced to fight or tortured in other ways—but we fully expect the Court to uphold a narrower federal statute barring distribution of vile videos that depict indisputable cruelty to animals. The bill is already in the works. And in case anyone out there who takes pleasure in others' pain is rejoicing, please take note: Abusing animals or inciting others to do so is still illegal and will result in jail time.
Caring people agree that video depictions of cruelty to animals should only be legal when their purpose is to expose—not promote—cruelty to animals. PETA's undercover footage—which shows elephants as they are beaten by circus trainers, chickens as they are scalded to death in slaughterhouses, and snakes as they are skinned alive—truly motivate, rather than titillate, viewers and inspire them to get involved and help stop the suffering. Case in point: You and me. Tell us which PETA video inspired you (and then please do a good deed by forwarding it to someone who doesn't realize what's going on in the world).
Written by Karin Bennett
Tweeps, we need your help! USA Today has announced that it will donate a full-page ad (a $189,400 value) to the nonprofit organization that garners the most tweets on Twitter. If PETA wins, we will use the ad to call for an end to Canada's annual seal slaughter, which is happening right now and may result in some 388,200 seals being bludgeoned and killed on the ice this year. Imagine if just one tweet could save one seal.
The contest ends on Friday, April 16, so please tweet, retweet, and post our tweet on your Facebook pages ASAP. Just be sure to include "#AmericaWants @PETA to get a full-page ad in USA TODAY" in your tweet so your vote will count. If you haven't yet joined the "flock," please sign up for a Twitter account now so that you can make your voice heard. A tweet for PETA is a tweet for seals!
Written by Lindsay Pollard-Post
PETA pal Pink recently tweeted that she had "… the BESTest day" with her "amazing sexy hubby," Carey Hart, riding around on beach cruisers and watching the circus. Not to worry, though—our girl Pink would never attend the kind of circus that tears baby elephants away from their mothers and beats them with bullhooks. Pink's tweet continued: "Not the real circus people. No animals, just people. That look and behave like animals. On acid. Tis' a colorful world." We should all take a cue from this compassionate couple and support one of the many circuses that leave animals in peace and feature only amazingly talented—and, most importantly, willing—human performers!
Via Vegetarian Star
Looking for a way to rebel against a Debbie Friedman–saturated childhood this Passover?
OK, as the daughter of a Hebrew school principal/music director, maybe it's just me, but everyone should check out Jewish-vegan-reggae-rock-hip-hop artist Matisyahu, whose video for "One Day" was rated one of the 10 most inspiring videos on the Web.
In response to a suggestion that he put a shrimp on the barbie while he's in Australia, Matisyahu recently tweeted, "Sorry babe [shrimp are] not kosher plus I went vegan."
The last time Matisyahu played in Norfolk, PETA delivered him a basket of vegan treats along with the video "If This Is Kosher…" narrated by Jonathan Safran Foer. The video shows footage from an investigation at Agriprocessors, the world's largest kosher slaughterhouse.
This is the year I start a new Passover tradition by sending my dad a similar PETA gift basket, only with a Matisyahu CD and a card reading, "Beets Beat Brisket." Leave a comment with your favorite compassionate Passover tradition (or a better slogan for my card)!
Written by Heather Drennan
As one of America's toughest trainers, The Biggest Loser's Bob Harper is hardcore. He's taken 100 pounds off a man in a mere seven weeks (remember Rudy?), breaks contestants down and builds them back up during Last Chance Workouts, and gives us the skinny with his Trainer Tips on NBC. Now he's focused on challenging the country to a 24-hour vegan cleanse.
Bob's latest tweet reads, "Your Challenge today is to go the next 24 hours, starting now eliminating ALL animal products. Good for your heart AND the environment!!"
Go vegan? But how? Well, in the famed words of Bob himself, "Just stop talking and do it!" Or, you know, a vegetarian/vegan starter kit works just as well.
Written by Christine Doré
"Louis Vuitton foxtail handbag accessories make me sick. Please do not purchase those! It's heinous."—tweet from Sharon Osbourne
We're not the only ones loving Sharon Osbourne's compassionate tweet against Louis Vuitton—her wise words have been retweeted again and again by people across the Internet. Sharon—who donated her furs to PETA in 2004—speaks her mind and takes flack from nobody, which is why she's definitely my pick for who's going to win the upcoming season of Celebrity Apprentice.
Louis Vuitton, because of your bloody bags, YOU'RE FIRED!
Written by Logan Scherer
We were inundated with precious pics of your too-cute-for-140-characters animal companions in our Valentine's Day Twitter contest, and now we're featuring the winners in four V-Day e-cards:
At the top left, meet Meeme and Mochi, who may have been watching too much Twilight before their picture was taken. The cutie in the top right is Fifi and in the bottom left is Cricket, the eye patch–sporting dog who was rescued from a trash bin. Last but not least, meet Lucia and James, who apparently can't get enough of each other.
Choose your favorite card and send it to your valentine with a personalized message. Oh, and not to worry—you're not limited to 140 characters!
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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