So it started last week, GreenPeace was on campus trying to get money and support for whatever it is GreenPeace does these days. Needless to say, I avoided them more than I avoided that kid in my class who had Swine Flu (okay, it may not have been Swine Flu, but seriously. It was like,"Excuse me kid, you left your lung back there."). It's not that I hate the environment. It's just that Greenpeace is a tad too militant for my liking. They make rather questionable claims and do things that are occasionally not actually eco-friendly. So being a proponent of "practice what you preach," I tend to shy away from supporting them. You may be asking what PETA has to do with Greenpeace; well, there is a connection. As my friend and I were walking away, I was explaining why I hate groups like Greenpeace and PETA. Little did she know, she was opening a can of worms.
You see. I have a weird quirk. I do this thing, where I value ethical treatment of human beings above the ethical treatment of animals. Weird, right? PETA may support the rights of field mice, but they seem to think the objectification of women is A OKAY! For years now, PETA has run several campaigns including the Lettuce Ladies, the "Rather be naked than wear fur," and one where you could learn about animal cruelty and take a test in which a female avatar would strip down for each correct question. Forgive me for my eccentricities, but I think one can advocate for ethical treatment without place women in subordinate, sexualized position. Are women's rights really that inferior to a mink's rights? I mean seriously. We can't oppose the strangling of chicken or stripping of a seal without having some scantily clad woman traipse across an intersection or pose in a cage or wear LETTUCE?! I support ethical treatment of animals. Maybe not how PETA would like because I do eat meat. But I prefer for my meat to be free range, hormone free, and killed as humanely as possible. I would gladly sign a petition if PETA wasn't so militant and crazy and so set on setting back the women's rights movement!
In summary, here's my letter to PETA:
Dear PETA,
You may rather be naked than wear fur. But I would rather eat a lambchop than sign any of your petitions.
Sincerely,
Me
NELL! I am laughing so hard right now. And I just shared my undying love for you with my sister. She now loves you, too. She was a feminist studies major in college, so naturally she loved this post.
ReplyDeleteHonestly, the majority of vegetarians I know really hate PETA, too, and not just because of their marketing tactics (although they play a huge part...& so militant when vegetarianism is supposed to be a peace promoting lifestyle, ya know?). They have lots of dirty secrets in terms of animal treatment and some money deals with animal-abusive companies...sooooo long story short, they're lame.