Presidential Candidates Meet PETA’s ‘Climate Change Cow’
For Immediate Release:
September 19, 2019
Contact:
Brooke Rossi 202-483-7382
Today, PETA’s “climate change cow” was at the Georgetown University Climate Forum, greeting candidates one by one with a sign proclaiming, “Go Vegan or We All Die,” to call their attention to animal agriculture’s massive contribution to the climate crisis. The message prompted positive reactions from many in attendance, including Andrew Yang, who rushed over to the “cow,” high-fived her, and agreed that she’s spot-on. Candidate Marianne Williamson exclaimed, “I’m trying! I’m trying!” when she saw PETA’s message to go vegan. The “cow” also chatted with candidates Julian Castro and Bill Weld, who stated, “We’ve got a number of vegans in our family. I’m not a vegan yet,” and took home a vegan starter kit. Photos from the event are available here.
PETA’s “cow” has mooved in political circles before, previously chewing the cud with Joe Biden and Cory Booker at the Democratic Party Convention, and she’ll be a familiar face at future political events to push candidates to take action before it’s too late.
A recent analysis of the food system’s impact on the environment stated that a massive reduction in eating animal “products” is essential to avoid dangerous climate change, including cutting beef consumption by 90% and dairy milk consumption by 60% in Western countries. More than 90% of the Amazon rainforest that’s been cleared since 1970 is used for meat production, which is a major contributor to pollution, land degradation, water shortages, and habitat destruction. A global shift to vegan eating is necessary to combat the worst effects of climate change, as animal agriculture alone is responsible for nearly one-fifth of human-induced greenhouse-gas emissions.
“The meat and dairy industries are guzzling up natural resources, decimating land and wildlife, spewing out contaminants, and messing up our planet’s weather,” says PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman. “PETA’s ‘climate change cow’ will be at other events, both Republican and Democratic ones, to urge everyone to embrace a vegan way of life in the face of the climate crisis.”
PETA’s motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to eat,” and it opposes speciesism, a human-supremacist worldview. The group does not endorse or oppose any candidate or political party for public office. More information about animal agriculture and climate change is available here.
