PETA Supporters Call Out Hypocrisy at Women’s Marathon in Georgia
Bearing a 10-foot banner showing the suffering behind every drop of cow’s milk, a pack of PETA supporters descended upon the Every Woman’s Marathon in Savannah, Georgia on November 16 to call out the hypocrisy of the organizing of a women’s race by the dairy industry—which only keeps female cows alive as long as they can have babies and lactate.
The animal allies carried signs reading, “The Milk Marathon Runs on Cruelty,” to inform participants that the dairy industry runs on cruelty.
We also had a mobile billboard circling the event with heartbreaking footage of anguished mother cows chasing after their stolen babies. In the dairy industry, workers tear newborn calves away from their mothers so that they can take the milk meant to nourish them to sell to humans.
This action was preceded by a pre-race Wellness Fair & Expo the day before the race, where PETA allies urged attendees to stand in solidarity with all females—including cows in the dairy industry.
Animal Advocates and PETA Have Been Pushing Race Organizers and Sponsors for Months
In anticipation of the race, we sent public letters to National Youth Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman and members of the Every Woman’s Marathon advisory board—including paratriathlon champion Danielle McLaughlin and Olympic medalist Deena Kastor—pointing out that there’s no such thing as a pro–dairy industry feminist.
We also sent letters to other race sponsors in September urging them to reconsider their support for the race. When they didn’t respond, more than 47,000 PETA supporters took action to put the pressure on.
A Cow’s Milk is Meant for Her Babies—Not Humans
Like human mothers, female cows produce milk only when pregnant or nursing, have deep maternal instincts, and will go to great lengths to protect their babies. Female cows are repeatedly forcibly inseminated (raped)—workers insert an arm into the cow’s rectum and a metal rod to deliver semen into her vagina to keep her pregnant. Newborn males are routinely slaughtered for veal, while female calves endure the same fate as their mothers until their bodies wear out from repeated pregnancies.
Each person who goes vegan spares nearly 200 animals every year, dramatically shrinks their food-related carbon footprint and slashes their risk of suffering from cancer, heart disease, strokes, diabetes, and obesity. PETA’s free vegan starter kit is filled with tips to help anyone looking to make the switch:
