Written by Michelle Kretzer
We think animals would agree with Maxim readers' choice for the top spot on the "Hot 100" list of the sexiest women in the world. Besides being a model guardian for her rescued dogs and a staunch adoption advocate, Miley Cyrus has worked to get horses who are forced to pull carriages off New York City's streets, shown her fondness for pigs, helped raise money for animal shelters, spoken out against "ag-gag" bills, and earned PETA's Compassionate Citizen Award for rescuing chickens. She even inspired PETA's mascots to twerk on Hollywood Boulevard! If that isn't beautiful, we don't know what is.
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Actually, animals would probably be pretty pumped about the rest of the Hot 100 list, too—it's loaded with PETA poster gals, including Daniella Alonso, Rocsi Diaz, Ke$ha, Joanna Krupa, Eva Mendes, Yvonne Strahovski, Lea Michele, Charlize Theron, Olivia Munn, and our reigning Sexiest Vegan Female Celebrity, Jessica Chastain.
Lovely ladies who subscribe to healthy vegetarian lifestyles also made the list, including Kellie Pickler, Lake Bell, and Olivia Wilde. And let us not forget the long list of celebrities who always adopt and never buy, including Zooey Deschanel, Kat Dennings, Ashley Greene, Zoe Saldana, Amanda Seyfried, Kaley Cuoco, and Emma Stone.
Hats off to you, gals, and thank you for making compassion for animals so sexy!
Written by Jeff Mackey
In a sign of the success of the animal rights movement, candidates running for mayor of New York City gathered for a forum on May 6 with an exclusive focus on how much they care about the nonhuman residents of the Big Apple.
iStockPhoto.com/vikarus
The forum was organized by NYCLASS (New Yorkers for Clean, Livable and Safe Streets), a group that PETA works with, especially on our campaign to get horses forced to pull carriages off the streets of New York City. While the mayoral hopefuls drew attention to their vegetarian children and rescued animals, attendees made sure that the candidates understood that the cruel horse-drawn carriage trade is a key issue.
When PETA was founded in 1980, animal rights was all but absent from social and political agendas. Now, as Bob Dylan famously noted, "The times they are a-changin'." And as this event showed, they're changing in animals' favor!
How You Can Help
Please join PETA, NYCLASS, Lea Michele, Pink, Adrien Brody, Miley Cyrus, Martina Navratilova, Alec Baldwin, and Kristen Johnston in calling for a ban on horse-drawn carriages in New York City. Then become a PETA member to help keep animal rights moving forward.
It seems like Miley Cyrus' actions for animals are never-ending. This week, she asked her fans to help get horses suffering in the horse-drawn carriage industry off New York's streets, tweeting, "NYC is just 761 signatures shy of 100,000 petition goal to #FreeTheHorsesNYC! Sign @NYCLASS petition at StopHorseAbuse.com." Miley's fans' signatures pushed the New Yorkers for Clean, Safe, and Livable Streets petition well above the 100,000 that the group needed. And Miley and her mother, Tish, gushed about their gratefulness to their Twitter followers.
Jason Mraz was likely grateful for all the help that he got from his Twitter followers, too. When he tweeted asking where to find the best vegan eats in Sydney, Australia, PETA and Jason's fans were quick to respond with some yummy suggestions.
And Miley and Jason aren't the only sexy stars whose tweets we've been eyeing this week:
We also caught a glimpse of yet another sweet quote from one of our Sexiest Vegetarian Celebrity alums, Carrie Underwood. When The Guardian asked her about growing up on a cattle farm in Oklahoma, she answered, "The worst part of the year for me was when we took some off to sell, because they would cry for each other for a couple of days. That's why I don't eat meat."
Ricki Lake has been inspired to embrace plants, too. She is reportedly enjoying more vegan meals after watching Forks Over Knives. PETA sent her some love in the form of a vegetarian/vegan starter kit, Alicia Silverstone's book The Kind Diet, and our meat industry exposé "Glass Walls," narrated by Paul McCartney.
Ricki's timing couldn't have been better, since this week marked Meatout 2013. Nikita's Maggie Q was in full celebration mode, encouraging all her Twitter followers to "[t]ry it!!!"
Sam Simon joined in, challenging his friend, radio personality Bubba the Love Sponge, to watch "Glass Walls" and go vegan for one week. Sam asked PETA for help, so we sent "Lettuce Lady" Lindsay Rajt, associate director of campaigns, to Tampa, Florida, to help Bubba with the transition and to appear on his show all week to talk about it. Bubba says that he's enjoying the challenge and has a newfound love for vegan biscuits with meat-free gravy and rice milk.
While the shock jock is warming up to faux food, Shania Twain's faux fur is keeping her warm. Her new show in Las Vegas features "dazzling costumes," including only faux fur, of course.
And while Shania makes her point to the card sharks, Kyle Chandler is helping those other sharks. Alongside his daughter, Sawyer, he attended Humane Lobby Day in Austin, Texas, in support of a proposed bill that would ban shark-finning.
To keep up with what all your favorite stars are doing for animals, follow @PETA on Twitter.
Ever since her red swimsuit days, people have been enamored with PETA's weapon of mass distraction, Pamela Anderson. And now you can have a little piece of the original "Lettuce Lady" for yourself. When Pam and PETA Vice President Dan Mathews spoke to Cambridge University about animal rights, she autographed copies of the Paul McCartney–narrated meat-industry exposé "Glass Walls" for the students. And she autographed a few more to give to lucky PETA Files readers.
To enter to win, simply leave a comment telling us about something Pam-like that you've done to help animals—her résumé is extensive, so there's plenty to choose from. Maybe you've attended a fur demonstration, spoken out against the Canadian seal slaughter, ditched meat, adopted a companion animal, given a speech about animal rights, switched to cruelty-free cosmetics, or acted to get horse-drawn carriages off the dangerous streets.
Or maybe—like Pam—you've done all of the above. Just tell us about it, and two winners will be selected at random.
And if reading about all of Pam's compassionate actions has inspired you, plenty of animals still need your help, so get out there and get Pamelactive!
The contest will end on March 27, 2013, and we'll contact the winners by March 29, 2013. By commenting here, you're acknowledging that you've read and you agree to our contest terms and conditions and our privacy policy and you're also agreeing to our collection, storage, use, and disclosure of your personal info in accordance with those policies as well as to receiving e-mails from us.
International Women's Day, March 8, is a day for women to celebrate the many victories that we have achieved in our fight for equality, to honor all the gutsy gals who made it happen, and to collaborate to make the future bright for girls.
PETA has been proud to work with many powerful women of every age, race, and sexual orientation to help animals. The following brazen beauties used their most valuable asset—their minds—to speak up for the oppressed because, as Dr. Jane Goodall so eloquently put it, "If we do not do something to help these creatures, we make a mockery of the whole concept of justice":
1. Variety magazine honored Lea Michele at its annual Power of Women celebration for her work with PETA.
2. Joan Jett is a feminist icon—and she rocks for animals, too.
3. Not only does Taraji P. Henson have an angelic face, she also is an angel for our sisters in the animal kingdom, too.
4. Marlen Esparza is tough on her opponents and tough on cruelty.
5. Of course, women excel in science—and as Torrey DeVitto points out, they can do it humanely, too.
6. The list of PETA Honorary Director Pamela Anderson's brave acts for animals is endless. She proves that women can have beauty, brains, and brawn.
7. The fierce Kate del Castillo uses her powerful persona to help the defenseless.
8. WNBA star Candace Parker won't let male ballers soak up all the glory—and she won't let people glorify fur, either.
9. Ending cruelty and sexism? Jorja Fox is on the case.
10. Wendy Williams knows that women don't have to fit a cookie-cutter image to be a true beauty.
Girl power!
How do horses show love? They nuzzle and groom each other.
How do people show love to horses? By refusing to ride in a horse-drawn carriage.
On most Valentine's Days, record numbers of these sensitive, skittish animals are forced to drag carriages full of people across the hard pavement, dodging loud traffic and breathing exhaust fumes. But this February 14, PETA asked people to celebrate in a truly lovely way: taking a romantic stroll and leaving abused horses out of the plan.
Demonstrators explained that in the past year alone, there have been 13 accidents involving horse-drawn carriages. There were a barrage of supportive honks and thumbs-up signs, and a group of 50 high school students saw us and cheered.
And the efforts paid off: Few people climbed aboard the carriages.
Multitudes have called on New York to ban horse-drawn carriages. Please add your name to the list today.
As half of one of the world's cutest on- and off-screen couples, we figured that Lea Michele would have some great ideas for how to spend Valentine's Day. We were right. Lea doesn't want expensive jewelry or a massive bouquet of flowers. Her idea of a lovely evening is laid-back and simple.
"My idea of the perfect romantic Valentine's Day is staying at home, cooking a yummy dinner, and watching a really scary movie," she told us.
Sounds like the real-life Rachel loves simply snuggling up under a blanket with her beloved. But Lea made it clear where we'll never catch her canoodling: in a horse-drawn carriage.
"The one thing I find the least romantic is taking a horse and carriage ride," she said. "I can't express enough how unhappy these horses are and how much pain and suffering they go through each day. Please do not ride [in horse-drawn carriages]. Take a beautiful walk together with your loved ones instead of bringing more pain to these beautiful animals."
Yeah, there are few things less romantic than watching horses breathe exhaust fumes and dodge traffic. Watching your loved one breathe in yummy aromas coming from the oven and dodge a playfully lobbed strawberry, however …
Lady Gaga, a one-time anti-fur advocate and supposed anti-bullying advocate, seems to flip-flop more than a new pair of Havaianas. Now Sharon Osbourne is calling the singer out on it, saying:
[W]hen I saw you wear a dress made out of raw meat, I was sickened. When I see you wearing fur, and using it as a fashion statement, the fact that defenseless animals have been killed so you can get your picture in the press is abhorrent to me. Shouldn't you be teaching your 'little monster' fans to respect animals and life?
Whether the target is people or animals, no one likes a bully. Maybe that's why staunch animal advocates have been scooping up so many awards lately.
At the People's Choice Awards, Glee stars Lea Michele and Chris Colfer claimed Favorite Comedic TV Actress and Actor awards and Jason Mraz was named Favorite Male Artist. Ellen DeGeneres was named Favorite Daytime TV Host, Jared Padalecki's show Supernatural took Favorite Sci-Fi/Fantasy TV Show honors, and Mayim Bialik's The Big Bang Theory was voted Favorite Network TV Comedy. Presenters Olivia Munn and Ian Somerhalder were a huge hit, and host Kaley Cuoco even took a page out of PETA's book and fought back against dog shaming with a little "people shaming" of her own.
Bones' David Boreanaz and Emily Deschanel were named TV Guide's Best Actor and Best Actress. Onscreen, the TV couple focus on investigating deaths, but off-screen David and Emily are all about saving animals' lives.
Animal advocate extraordinaire Russell Simmons is being honored with the Visionary Award from the Producers Guild of America for his philanthropy and ethical approach to business. And several stars snagged our nominations for best animal-friendly tweets of the week:
With all the love for animals and the folks who defend them that's been going around this week, guess who got named among the least popular people in America? That'd be the Kardashian family, who ranked lower than Congress, root canals, and traffic jams.
Unlike some members of the Kardashian clan, Lena Dunham prefers her fur attached to its rightful owner. She happily shared photos of her fluffy new rescued dog, Lamby, on Instagram.
It's also a boy for Miley Cyrus, who just added new rescued puppy Bean to her family. Meanwhile, her sister Noah Cyrus was celebrating another milestone. For her 13th birthday, Noah asked her friends to donate $13 toward getting horse-drawn carriages off New York City's streets.
Vocal horse advocate Kathy Najimy put her money where her mouth is, competing on Food Network's Rachael vs. Guy Celebrity Cook-Off to benefit PETA. Of course Kathy, along with competitor and fellow PETA supporter Cornelia Guest, cooked all vegetarian meals.
Perhaps Kathy and Cornelia could swap recipes with Gwyneth Paltrow, who is releasing a new vegetarian-friendly cookbook. Their expertise may even come in handy on the final frontier. One of America's most respected space entrepreneurs, PayPal co-founder Elon Musk, is making plans to establish the first colony on Mars—but no meat-eaters are allowed.
That means that even on Mars we could still enjoy the musical stylings of longtime vegetarian Paul McCartney. And it's a good thing that Elon's shuttles will likely be made without animal skins, because Macca won't ride in a vehicle with leather seats.
As ever-more people join PETA and New Yorkers for Clean, Livable & Safe Streets (NYCLASS) in calling for a ban on New York's horse-drawn carriages, Alec Baldwin is taking advocacy for horses to primetime.
In an upcoming episode of 30 Rock, people across the country will hear Alec's character, Jack Donaghy, call horse-drawn carriages "rolling torture wagons for nature's most dignified creature." That's the perfect way to describe the disgusting little business that forces horses to trudge along in all weather extremes, inhaling exhaust fumes and risking becoming one of the horses who are killed or injured by cars.
Here's what Alec had to say about the upcoming episode:
"Rolling torture wagons for nature's most dignified creature." That's how my 30 Rock character Jack Donaghy describes horse-drawn carriages, and it's why I agreed to appear in a scene featuring a carriage. It reflects my personal belief that New York should join Toronto, London, and Paris in outlawing hansom cabs from city centers. I've been speaking out with PETA against the cruelty of horse-drawn carriages for decades, and I'm thrilled that Intro. 86A, the bill to replace the carriages with eco-friendly classic replica cars, has garnered so much support in the City Council. I urge New Yorkers to contact their City Council members in support of the ban and people around the country to sign NYCLASS' petition.
So make like Kenneth the page and do as Mr. Donaghy says. If you live in New York, please contact your City Council representatives and urge them to pass Intro. 86A. If you are outside New York, please sign NYCLASS' petition to ban horse-drawn carriages.
Our hearts have been saddened by the shocking news that Jessie Streich-Kest—who worked closely with PETA on campaigns to end the use of horse-drawn carriages in New York City—was killed along with a friend by a falling tree in Brooklyn's Ditmas Park during Hurricane Sandy while walking her dog, Max, who is recovering from his injuries. Jessie was just 24 years old. PETA is paying tribute to her memory by adding her name to a leaf plaque on our Tree of Life.
Jessie was a dedicated advocate for animals who served as a field organizer for NYCLASS (New Yorkers for Clean, Livable and Safe Streets). She was outspoken about the need to shut down the horse-drawn carriage trade because of the miseries inflicted on the horses—including extreme weather, chaotic traffic, hard pavement, exhaust fumes, loud noises, inadequate care, and eventual slaughter—as well as the dangers to the public. Our thoughts and prayers go out to her family at this difficult time.
What You Can Do
Although our hearts mourn the loss of Jessie, PETA is more determined than ever to realize her goal of improving the lives of New York's horses—and you can help. Please help us pay tribute to Jessie by urging City Council Speaker Christine Quinn to support legislation to phase out the use of horse-drawn carriages in favor of humane, safe, and eco-friendly electric versions of classic cars.
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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