Confronting a Fur-Wearer
I like making people feel comfortable and am the sort of person who will wake up at 6 a.m. to cook a surprise breakfast for a friend despite the fact that I don’t like waking up early. Doing things to make others feel welcome and comfortable just feels right to me. And confronting people to make them feel uncomfortable is not something that comes naturally to me, but I am an animal rights activist, and sometimes you need to be a voice in defense of those who cannot speak for themselves.
For example, when I see someone standing next to me in line at a coffee shop in a fur coat, I immediately think, “Oh no, I am so not in the mood to talk to anyone, but I must.” I then feel so outraged while staring at their coat that I think I might explode. When I open my mouth to speak, however, it ends up just being a polite, innocent, and quiet, “Excuse me. Is your coat a real fur?” If the wearer actually fesses up and admits that it is, I usually invoke a surprised look that is on the verge of tears and say something like, “Oh no! If it were fake, I was going to tell you just how awesome you were for making such a compassionate choice, but yikes! That’s a lot of little bunnies!”
Depending on the way the conversation goes, I either politely yet firmly mention that the animals who are bred in the fur industry are kept in deplorable conditions and are anally electrocuted and then encourage them to donate their coat to homeless people (who are the only people who have an excuse to use a fur to keep warm, as they are unable to purchase coats for themselves), or if the fur-wearer storms off when I start to explain all of this, I just yell something like, “THERE’S NO EXCUSE!” or “FUR IS DEAD!”
Throughout the winter season, I also keep stickers and leaflets in my coat pockets. Often when on the go and just briefly whisking by someone in a fur, you only have time enough to hand them a leaflet. Do be sure to fold the leaflet so that an image of a skinned animal is not the first thing they see, as they will be unlikely to take it from you. There are plenty of beautiful and warm alternatives to fur.
Search for cruelty-free clothing.
