Dear Readers,
“Please take a few minutes now to tell the EU you support a ban on seal product trade.”
—Paul McCartney
Like me, you’ve probably seen the horrifying images of helpless baby seals being beaten and shot for their fur. Wounded seals left to suffer in agony. Conscious pups sliced open. And the reason for their pain? So that someone can sell their fur.
For so many years, we’ve tried to stop this senseless brutality. Today, you and I have a chance to stop this cruelty forever.
Twenty-five years ago, the European Union made history when it ended its trade in products from newborn harp seals. Commercial seal hunting in some countries came to a virtual standstill, and countless baby seals were saved. But the hunters began to kill the pups when they were slightly older — and the products from those seals are legally traded in the EU. Today, some commercial seal hunts are twice as large as they were when the EU first took action.
But there is new hope for the seals. The EU is considering ending all seal product trade in the European Union, regardless of the age of the seals. This move would save millions of seals from brutal slaughter, and help put a final end to commercial seal hunting globally.
Right now, the EU is asking people around the world to submit their opinions on the historic proposal. Please take a few minutes today to tell the European Union you fully support a ban on seal product trade.
I’m lucky: I was able to visit a harp seal nursery in Canada’s Gulf of St. Lawrence before the hunters descended. The sight of mothers and their pups on the pristine ice is one I won’t forget, and I’ve committed myself to working to preserve that wondrous spectacle for generations to come.
Commercial seal hunting doesn’t simply cause unimaginable suffering to the seals; it is also dehumanizing and often dangerous work, contributing very little to the incomes of the hunters. A European Union ban on all seal product trade would force nations where seal huting has taken place to invest in real alternatives — jobs that will provide safe and sustainable futures.
Lets work together to make a better life for seals and people. Say no to the cruel trade in seal products in the European Union. It doesn’t matter where you live — your voice counts. Please take action to save the seals today.
The deadline for the European Union to hear your views is February 13.
Sincerely,
Paul McCartney
Grammy-winning singer Pink and funnyman Ricky Gervais have teamed up for the just-released PETA ad “Stolen for Fashion.” In the ad, Pink and Ricky provide the voices for computer-generated animals who make their case that exotic skins and fur belong only on their original owners.