PETA Protesters Will Confront Attendees of International Wool Conference to Push for Boycott of Australian Wool From Mulesed Sheep
For
Immediate Release:
May
4, 2012
Contact:
Shakira Croce 202-483-7382
New York -- Two PETA members—wearing only bodypaint to depict the Australian flag—will lead a contingent of PETA protesters as they greet members of the wool industry arriving for the 81st International Wool Textile Organisation Congress in Midtown on Monday. Holding signs that read, "Boycott Australian Wool" and "Stop Lamb Mutilations," the PETA members will call on members of the public to refuse to buy wool from Australia until the Australian wool industry ends a practice called "mulesing," in which large chunks of flesh and skin are cut from lambs' backsides in a crude, cruel, and ineffective attempt to prevent maggot infestation:
When: Monday, May 7, 12 noon
Where: Outside the Millennium Broadway Hotel, 145 W. 44th St. (between Sixth and Seventh avenues), New York
"People are horrified to learn that Australian wool comes from lambs who have had chunks of their backside flesh and skin cut off with gardening shears," says PETA's Lindsay Rajt. "PETA is calling on consumers and companies to boycott Australian wool until Australia ends cruel mulesing mutilations."
Mulesing often results in the same maggot infestation that it aims to prevent, as the gaping, bloody wounds often become infested with maggots before they have time to heal. Humane methods of prevention are widely available and already in use by some sheep farmers, and experts estimate that with an aggressive breeding program, the industry could transition to sheep who are less susceptible to "flystrike" in approximately two years.
PETA has persuaded dozens of clothing designers and retailers—including Abercrombie & Fitch, H&M, Limited Brands, Liz Claiborne, Gap Inc., and Timberland—to stop sourcing wool from mulesed lambs.
For more information, please visit PETA.org.