Woman Strips Naked in Philadelphia to Protest Ringling Cruelty

Wearing Nothing but Tiger Stripes, PETA Beauty Bares the Truth About Circus's Abuse of Animals

For Immediate Release:
February 17, 2010

Contact:
Amanda Fortino 757-622-7382

Philadelphia -- Confined to a cage with her nude body painted like a tiger and a banner above her reading, "Wild Animals Don't Belong Behind Bars," PETA member Melissa Sehgal will protest the impending arrival of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus in Philadelphia.

When:   Thursday, February 18, 12 noon

Where:  Southwest corner of Ninth and Market streets, Philadelphia

When tigers aren't performing, they are warehoused in cramped cages. Elephants who are used in the circus also suffer. PETA has revealed dozens of never-before-seen photos taken inside Ringling's Florida training center by a veteran elephant handler. The photos expose how still-nursing baby elephants are captured rodeo-style and dragged away from their mothers. The babies scream and struggle frantically as they are wrestled, stretched out, slammed to the ground, gouged with steel-tipped bullhooks, and shocked with electric prods. These abusive sessions go on for several hours a day for up to a year.

"I'll gladly bare my skin if it will help expose Ringling's abusive treatment of animals," says Sehgal. "The best way to stop this abuse is for people to boycott Ringling and other circuses that use animals."

For more information, please visit PETA's Web site RinglingBeatsAnimals.com.