PETA Global 2019 Issue 2

WHY THE ‘WHITE STUFF’ ISN’T THE RIGHT STUFF By Zachary Toliver, PETA Blogger

KICKING THE LEATHERHABIT: FROMBALLET SLIPPERS TO COWBOY BOOTS A ttention all dancing queens and sharp dressed men: If you wear leather, you can’t possibly knowwhose skin you’re in. Pigs, goats, sheep, alligators, ostriches, kangaroos, and even dogs and cats are all slaughtered for their skin. Dog leather ends up mislabeled and exported in the form of gloves, belts, cat toys, and other items. PETA Asia’s investigation into a Cambodian slaughterhouse that supplies the international leather industry revealed that workers repeatedly bash cows in the head with sledgehammers and then cut their throats while they’re still conscious. PETA international affiliates have found similar cruelty in every single slaughterhouse they’ve visited. Now, as a result of investigations, corporate negotiations, and hard-hitting campaigns by PETA and its affiliates, the world is embracing vegan leather. Tesla replaced all its leather seats with vegan ones. Ride services Lyft and Uber removed the requirement for leather seats in their high-end contract cars. The US National Collegiate Athletic Association now requires basketball tournaments to use synthetic balls, and major fashion players from Pharrell Williams to Hugo Boss have rolled out animal friendly shoes. Vegan Footwear, FromHyderabad to Helsinki With encouragement from PETA India and the Animal Welfare Board of India, the Central Board of Secondary Education issued an advisory urging all schools in India to require canvas shoes rather than leather ones. Ballerinas: © Roan Pastor • Boots: © Image courtesy of Dr. Martens • Brogues: © Image courtesy of Will’s Vegan Shoes: httsp://wills-vegan-store.com Helsinki Fashion Week went leather-free at the request of PETA UK, which gave its first Vegan-Friendly High-Street Retailer Award to iconic British brand Marks & Spencer for offering 350 styles of shoes for men, women, and children all clearly marked “Vegan.” PETA France gave a Best Vegan Shoe Collection Award to Studio Céleste, a line by renowned retailer Galeries Lafayette that also carries the PETA logo. Other PETA France comrades include up-and-coming sneaker

Zachary Toliver: © Casey Hill • Toy Cow with Milk: © iStock.com/THEPALMER

No milk in this tee! Order at PETA.org/Store .

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I t sounds like a bizarre joke, but it’s real: White nationalists are now using milk emojis and sharing photos of themselves chugging milk to celebrate their “whiteness.” In The New York Times, geneticists try to explain white supremacists’ “reasoning”: Because of a genetic mutation in Europeans, white people are more likely to be able to digest lactose than the majority (65%) of humans, who are lactose intolerant. So white nationalists argue that their minority mutation somehow indicates that they belong to a “master race”! All was fairly quiet on the issue until PETA tweeted out a link to my blog reporting on the Times story and pointing out that milk is actually a symbol of human supremacism. Suddenly, the topic was on everyone’s lips – unlike milk, which had taken on an ugly connotation. Rape, Rob, Repeat When I think about a cow’s violence-filled life – a man’s arm is thrust into her rectum and a syringe is inserted into her vagina to impregnate her, she’s robbed of the milk meant for her baby, and she’s kicked down a ramp to her death once she’s no longer “productive”

– the parallels between the dairy industry and the oppression of human beings are inescapable.

Yes, you tutu can have vegan ballet slippers! Chassé over to the Cynthia King page at PETAMall.com to jeté off with a pair.

PETA has repeatedly uncovered and publicized the dairy industry’s cruelty. A PETA exposé of Heifer Solutions – a Wisconsin farm that raises approximately 1,000 cows at any given time – revealed that a farmhand used a hot iron to burn the horn-producing tissue off calves’ heads without any painkillers. The video shows the youngsters frantically kicking and crying out as smoke rises from their burning flesh. The worker described the torture as “fun” and said that inflicting third-degree burns on calves without relieving their pain made the process “more exciting.” Drinking Milk Supports Oppression It’s no surprise that a toxic subculture glorifying racism, violence, and sexismwould celebrate the dairy industry, but the truth is that all milk drinkers are behaving like supremacists when they buy dairy foods. Supporting an industry that separates mother cows from their beloved calves for the sole purpose of stealing their milk means exercising supremacy, as if humans were entitled to prioritize their fleeting desires over animals’ essential needs. There’s no doubt about it: The “white stuff” is not the right stuff, unless it comes from plants. A farmhand used a hot iron to burn the horn-producing tissue off calves’ heads without any painkillers.

brand and Meghan Markle favorite Veja as well as ASHOKA Paris, the first French brand to manufacture a “leather” bag made from apple skin.

Take Action Now Animal-friendly shoes are everywhere, fromMoo Shoes and DSW to T.U.K. and

Stella McCartney. They’re easy to find in designs that suit every style and function. For a list of PETA’s favorite brands and tips on transforming your closet from fatal to fabulous, check out PETA.org/WearVegan .

Dr. Martens just signed on to use the "PETA Approved Vegan" logo for its upcoming line of vegan footwear.

These snazzy kicks (and more) are just a click away at Wills-Vegan-Store.com .

“When I think about a cow's violence-filled life – the parallels between the dairy industry and the oppression and enslavement of human beings are inescapable.”

Take Action Now Please go to PETA.org/HeiferSolutions to watch PETA’s video exposé and to urge

Danone – maker of Dannon Yogurt and Horizon Organic milk – to stop supporting this cruelty by phasing out dehorning in its supply chain.

Global 17

16 LACTOSE, INTOLERANCE