Feed Chicken Killer Only Vegan Meals, Says PETA
For Immediate Release:
July 22, 2021
Contact:
Megan Wiltsie 202-483-7382
Convicted arsonist Christopher Vincent is currently imprisoned for setting fire to a chicken shed and killing the birds (among other crimes), and PETA has sent a letter to New Hampshire Prison for Men Warden Michelle Edmark asking her to help ensure that Vincent causes no more animal suffering—and to promote nonviolence at the prison—by providing him with strictly vegan meals.
“Just like humans, chickens and other animals feel pain and fear, value their lives, and don’t want to burn to death in a shed or bleed out in a slaughterhouse,” says PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman. “PETA is pointing out that greens and beans are healthy, cost-effective options that promote kindness and compassion in prison populations and throughout any other communities.”
PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to eat”—opposes speciesism, a human-supremacist worldview. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow the group on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram.
PETA’s letter to Edmark follows.
July 22, 2021
Michelle Edmark
Warden
New Hampshire State Prison for Men
Dear Ms. Edmark:
On behalf of PETA and our more than 6.5 million members and supporters worldwide, including tens of thousands in New Hampshire, I am writing to urge you to prevent Christopher Vincent from harming any other animals by serving him vegan meals during his time at the New Hampshire State Prison for Men. As you know, Vincent was convicted of arson and cruelty to animals for setting fire to two buildings, one of which housed more than a dozen chickens.
Families, law-enforcement agencies, and courts have begun to recognize that dismissing cruelty to animals as a “minor” crime is like ignoring a ticking time bomb, because studies show that people who commit acts of animal abuse often don’t stop there—many move on to target their fellow humans. And prisons—including Alabama’s highest-security prison, the William E. Donaldson Correctional Facility—have implemented vegan meals as part of successful violence-reduction programs.
It’s easy to see how eliminating meat, eggs, and dairy promotes compassion. Workers kill pigs for bacon, cows for burgers, and chickens for nuggets by slitting their throats and then often begin cutting them into pieces while they’re still conscious. On egg farms, the ends of chickens’ sensitive beaks are cut off without any painkillers. Mother cows used in milk production endure a constant cycle of pregnancy and childbirth, and their precious babies are torn away from them shortly after birth so that humans can take the milk for themselves. The only violence-free meal is a vegan one.
Serving Vincent vegan foods would also improve his health, saving taxpayers money on healthcare costs. Vegans have much lower rates of heart disease, obesity, cancer, diabetes, stroke, and dementia than meat-eaters do.
We would be happy to help you develop a cruelty-free meal plan for Vincent or for all your inmates. Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
Tracy Reiman
Executive Vice President
PETA
