Written by PETA
I know we've got Project Runway fans out there, especially after the show's guru of good taste, Tim Gunn, appeared in PETA's anti-fur video.
If, like me, you watch the show obsessively caught last night's episode, you probably did cartwheels in the living room when one "Divorcee Dress Challenge" client, Stephanie, insisted that Nicolas use no wool, silk, leather, or fur in his transformation of her old wedding dress into an outfit she could enjoy as a single woman. I believe her exact words were that she wanted him to be certain "no animals have to suffer."
Now if only Stephanie's snarky designer had spent less time rolling his eyes and more time fashioning a knock-out design instead of ho hum separates, he might have won the challenge. Either way, Stephanie gets top marks for speaking up for animals.
Written by Karin Bennett
Just in time for Oktoberfest comes a cow-friendly alternative to traditional Bavarian lederhosen, those Pinocchio-style knickers that are traditionally made of leather.* PETA Germany recently presented inventor Peter Kolb with a progress award for his swimwear designs that easily double as animal-free alternatives to leather lederhosen: yodel lay hee hoo (-ray), indeed!
Why the brewbrouhaha about leather trousers? Aside from the cruelty inherent in factory farms and slaughterhouses—where animals are castrated, dehorned, and branded without any anesthetics as well as frequently hoisted, shackled, and butchered while still conscious—the toxic chemicals used to tan leather are dangerous for the both the environment and human health.
Leather-free lederhosen are cheaper, beer-proof, and most importantly, animal-friendly. Let's tap a keg and toast compassion.
*For anyone who thinks that the Bavarian beer lover's tradition looks silly, I have two words for you—beer bong.
Thanks for all of your wonderful comments on this Win It Wednesday. The winner of the guitar strap is Kristen. Congratulations!
You've got the hair. You've got the eyeliner. You've got the guitar. But wait, what's the one thing every real rock star needs? A cruelty-free guitar strap, of course.
For this week's "Win It" Wednesday, we've got you covered. We're giving away one quality guitar strap from the stellar all-vegan company Couch Guitar Straps.
Leather is a co-product—not a byproduct—of the meat and dairy industries. When you buy leather, you contribute directly to the lifelong misery of cows and other animals, and you put money into the pockets of the people who exploit them.
How do you save a cow and gain a vegan guitar strap? Leave a comment about why cows are as cool as your favorite vegan musician. Whoever posts the most rockin' comment gets to choose a strap from Couch Guitar Straps (priced up to $38, including shipping and handling).
The contest ends on October 7, 2009, and we'll choose one comment as the winner on October 9, 2009. Be sure to read our privacy policy and terms and conditions, as you're agreeing to both by commenting.
Good luck!
Written by Heather Drennan
On the heels of government rebate programs to exchange old, smelly products for brand-spanking-new ones, PETA is working with our friends MooShoes to give compassionate New Yorkers $10 off the purchase of fabulous vegan footwear when they turn in a pair of shoes made from the skins of dead, abused animals.
Leather is bad for animals and bad for the environment, so there's no excuse to keep wrapping your tootsies in it. And now, newly compassionate NYC consumers who don't have the money for a cruelty-free wardrobe makeover (hint, hint, TLC—that'd be a ratings shoe-in!) can get at least a little help. Anyone who brings in a pair of leather sneakers, pumps, or loafers to the MooShoes store in New York before September 27 will receive a $10 credit toward a pair of snazzy vegan shoes.
MooShoes will donate all the leather shoes it receives to the homeless youth shelter Streetwork Project, making this one cattle drive with a happy ending.
Dear Guys,
Wearing Axe's new leather-inspired "Instinct" fragrance will not get you mobbed by a horde of horny honeys swooning over the smell of cow hides.
There's nothing sexy about smelling like or sporting rotten animal skins. (And yes, we have sexpert Pamela Anderson backing us up here.)
To prove that point, PETA is creating a much more realistic, slaughterhouse-inspired leather scent:
Believe us, if you show up for a date wearing "Instinct," leather, or even our own "Eau D' Abattoir," our first instinct will be to slam the door in your face.
Our advice? Pleather yourself, pronto.
Love,
The girls from PETA
How many crocodiles does it take to make a leather bag?
It sounds like the start of a really bad joke, but in a recent article, the chief executive for the French "luxury" goods group Hermes said, "It can take three to four crocodiles to make one of our bags so we are now breeding our own crocodiles on our own farms, mainly in Australia." (emphasis added)
He then quipped, "The world is not full of crocodiles, except the stock exchange!"
Oh, ho ho, funny guy. If you weren't ripping their skins off—sometimes while they are still alive and able to call out in distress—and turning them into overpriced purses, there would probably be plenty of crocodiles running around.
They did outlive the dinosaurs, after all, so my guess is that their survival instincts are pretty acute.
Here's what PETA Senior Vice President Dan Mathews had to say:
The thought of purposely breeding and killing crocodiles for an outdated, overpriced handbag should make any fashionista's skin crawl. If Hermes really wants to be a leader in the fashion industry, it should stop killing animals for cold-blooded vanity and use cruelty-free mock croc and fake snake instead. As Pink—who recently provided the voice of a computer-generated crocodile in PETA's "Stolen for Fashion" commercial—says, "Killing animals for their skins is so disgusting that it doesn't make me want to befriend designers who use them.
So how about this: Instead of breeding reptiles for fashion faux pas, watch "Stolen for Fashion," then pull a switcharoo and start using stylish synthetics instead.
Written by Shawna Flavell
Desert temperatures rose even higher as PETA's hot "cops" patrolled the Las Vegas strip, where they educated tourists about how animals suffer when they are killed and skinned to become boots, belts, and bags.
Honeymooners, bachelor partygoers, and even some casino employees lined up to talk to and pose for photos with our "fashion police," who were armed with information about alternatives to fur, leather, and exotic skins.
Next stop—KOMP's Rock & Roll Morning Show to give listeners the straight story on synthetics.
Wherever American artist Andrew Krasnow displays his maps, cowboy boots, and American flags, controversy is hot on his heels.
Why all the fuss, guys? Using human skin donated to medical science to make a nice pair of boots is a use of flesh that we should all throw our weight behind!
While the photos of his work (which he says is intended to question American ethics and values) might make you a wee bit queasy, Krasnow's creations are far more humane and understandable than leather jackets, snakeskin belts and baby-alligator–skin purses (their small heads included). Those turn my stomach because—unlike the folks who donate their bodies to science—cows, snakes, alligators, and other animals did not sign up to have their skins ripped from their bodies.
Krasnow's next show has been commissioned by the U.K. Human Tissue Authority. Hopefully, the protesters howling outside the show will stop to consider the skins used for their own belts and bags.
PETA's naked "snakes" have been spotted recently on both coasts, drawing attention to the cruelty inflicted on scaly species who are killed for their skins. Not since Rebecca Romijn slinked around in painted-on scales as Mystique for the X-Men trilogy have people found reptiles so alluring.
Those boots may be made for walkin', but were they made from an animal's sensitive skin? That may be the big question in the minds of travelers shuffling through the Memphis International Airport in the coming months.
In lieu of the nation's financial crunch, the Transportation Security Administration has decided to allow advertising on the shoe/belt/bag bins at security checkpoints in order to bring in extra revenue. Well, you can bet we're already all over this one!
In PETA's letter to the CEO of Memphis International Airport, we are requesting the right to advertise an anti-leather ad (shown below) on the shoe bins. The ad features the photograph of a "missing" calf named Charlie, who was pulled away from his mother, most likely branded without any pain relief, and eventually slaughtered for his meat. And his skin was made into someone's shoes, belt, or jacket—the very same items that get tossed into the bins at security checkpoints.
Airport advertising has the potential to reach gazillions of people, and by placing our ad in such a highly visible location we can help high-flyers get the message that leather kills—and make them think twice about their next purchases. Gorgeous, durable, cruelty-free shoes await their feet. Besides, the production of leather is catastrophic to the environment; planting a carbon offset tree for flight miles won't cover that!
Written by Jennifer Cierlitsky
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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