Vlogger Called Out PETA For How Horrible They Are, And People Are Finally Listening

By Brianna Acuesta

YouTuber encourages his followers not to donate to PeTA because of their cruel and unusual acts.

Ever since 1980, when the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PeTA) was first founded, they have been making waves and at the helm of global controversies. Normally, this is a good thing for a group that claims to advocate for animals and has to get on others’ nerves in order to effect any real change. However, PeTA’s behavior and actions have turned from controversial to downright sinister.

While the group does have some great programs, like their youth education on how to treat animals and their undercover videos that uncover cruelty in a variety of industries, allegations against them in recent years have exposed practices that are inexcusable. One public figure that decided to let his followers know about the cruelty that PeTA is involved in is Calum McSwiggan, a popular YouTuber and activist that advocates for LGBTQ rights, mental health, a other social issues. McSwiggan took to Twitter to start a thread and expose PeTA in an effort to persuade his followers not to give money to the organization. Read the thread below to see what he had to say.

Employees from PeTA were charged with animal cruelty after garbage bags filled with dead animals was discovered in dumpsters in Norfolk, Virginia, where their headquarters is. In 2011, they killed more than 96% of the dogs, cats, and other companion animals that they took in that year, adopted out less than two dozen, and gave the handful that were left to local shelters whether or not they were no-kill organizations. Amongst these animals were a mother cat and her kittens, who were given to PeTA by a veterinarian that was assured they would be adopted out. The cat and her kittens, though completely health and described by employees as “adoptable” and “adorable,” were killed within minutes of the vet relinquishing them.

PeTA has said that keeping animals as pets is an “abysmal situation” and a former employee that submitted an affidavit in favor of a family that is suing PeTA for stealing their dog outside of their home and euthanizing her has said that stealing animals just to kill them is not only common but encouraged. According to Heather Harper-Troje, the former employee, and many others who previously worked with the organization, PeTA founder Ingrid Newkirk directly told employees to routinely seek out loose animals, even if they were in someone’s yard, so that they could be euthanized. Newkirk has said herself that PeTA does not believe in an animal’s “right to live” and some have even theorized that she has Munchausen by Proxy Syndrome, leading her to kill as many animals as possible.

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One of the things that PeTA has done right is expose the fur industry by going undercover, encouraging celebrities to stop wearing fur, and other tactics that have garnered controversy. This particular method, however, only served to push people away from the advice of PeTA because they seemed to go too far with their graphics.

PeTA attempted to have the man, who was an Australian zookeeper, fired from his job, but the zoo responded that he had been an excellent keeper for more than 6 years. Since kangaroos can be extremely aggressive and are very strong, the dog was at serious risk of being strangled and it appeared that the kangaroo was aiming to attack the man next.

While it’s true that the dairy industry is incredibly true and that most people don’t know this, Ben and Jerry’s is at the forefront of change for people, animals, and the environment. They are a company that should be the least attacked for their usage of cow milk; they even released a few vegan ice creams last year.

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It’s fair to say that PeTA goes to extremes to convert people to veganism, but sometimes that’s the push that people need to see how cruel the meat, dairy, and egg industries are. On the other hand, PeTA goes as far as physically attacking people to change their views.

Some people responded by praising McSwiggan for his effort to raise awareness about the cruelty of the organization, but of course there were people that disagreed with his opinion that PeTA is overtly rude to people about becoming vegan. Regardless of what your view is on that particular part of his argument, there is indisputable evidence of the cruelty they have inflicted on animals with unnecessary euthanasia despite having tens of millions of dollars to aid them with adopting out animals. Donating to PeTA comes with risks regarding what exactly the money is paying for, but McSwiggan wanted all of his followers to know that he and many others no longer support the organization.

True Activist / Report a typo / Image credit: Calum McSwiggan