'COW', 'SHEEP' AND 'PIG' LIE IN COFFINS TO DECLARE, 'LEATHER IS MURDER'

For Immediate Release:

6 November 2009

Contact:

Arkaprava Bhar 09011009091; ArkapravaB@petaindia.org

Agra, Uttar Pradesh -- Dressed as "deceased" "cows", "sheep" and "pigs", People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India members will lie in a row of open coffins in front of the Leather Footwear Components & Technology Fair on Saturday. A banner reading, "Leather Is Murder", will be laid across the protesters. Other PETA members will hold up large pictures of animals slaughtered for their skin, and a funeral wreath will be placed on each of the open coffins. PETA aims to raise awareness of the ways in which animals are treated before they are turned into leather shoes, leather bags and other products. PETA encourages shoppers to choose synthetic materials and natural fibres instead of animal skins:

Date:   Saturday, 7 November

Time:   11 am

Place:   In front of Kalakriti Ground, Fatehabad Road Agra

Why does PETA have a beef with leather? When you buy leather, you contribute directly to the misery that animals endure in slaughterhouses. Not only are the vast majority of animals who are killed for their skin deprived of everything that is natural and important to them, they also suffer horrors such as painful mutilations and physical abuse, and they frequently endure cruel treatment during transport and slaughter. Animals killed for their flesh and skin are often dismembered and skinned while they are still conscious. In India, even the most basic animal protection laws are ignored in the production of leather. Leather tanneries also wreak havoc on the environment, and the pollution that tanneries generate has been linked to respiratory infections, certain types of cancer and other illnesses in humans.

"Bags, belts and shoes made from dead skin should be shunned by the living", says PETA India's Arkaprava Bhar. "We ask everyone to think before they buy and to make compassionate choices. If more people realised that leather supports unimaginable cruelty to animals, they would not be caught dead wearing the stuff. It's easy to choose products made of animal-friendly materials such as cotton, jute, satin and synthetics -- all of which are humane options that don't support cruelty to animals."

Synthetic leather and other animal-friendly options are available at just about any major shoe store or clothing shop.

For more information, please visit PETAIndia.com.

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