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Vegan activists have placed an anti-leather billboard near a major shopping center in San Antonio.
The board, created by animal rights organization PETA, shows three cows alongside the words: “We’re Individuals. We’re Not Shoes or Belts. Wear Something Vegan.”
The ad is located at 1398 S. Laredo St. (at the intersection with S. Pecos La Trinidad) in San Antonio and will be up for four weeks.
‘Wear vegan clothes intead’
“Just like us, cows are flesh and blood, feel pain and fear, and value their lives,” PETA Manager of Clothing Campaigns, Christina Sewell, said in a statement.
“PETA’s billboard will encourage shoppers to steer clear of items that stripped animals of their lives and opt for chic and humane vegan clothing instead.”
The charity adds: “Cows killed for leather endure castration, tail-docking, and dehorning without any pain relief. At slaughterhouses, their throats are slit and some are even skinned and dismembered while they’re still conscious.
“Tanneries use up to 130 different chemicals to prevent animal skins from decomposing in the buyers’ closets, and people who work in and live near tanneries suffer from exposure to these toxic chemicals.”
Vegan leather
Major innovations have been made in eco-conscious vegan leather alternatives in recent times with fabrics made from mushroom, pineapple, and apple, and coffee available.
Some of these fabrics were showcased at the recent Vegan Fashion Week in Los Angeles.
Pinatex – the biodegradable, eco-friendly vegan leather alternative made from pineapple leaf fibers that has been taking the fashion world by storm – as well as designs made from apple skin and shoes in fabrics derived from melted corn, were all seen on the runway.
