Carly the Robotic Cow Wants to Hoof It to Troutman Elementary

For Immediate Release:
October 17, 2022

Contact:
Robin Goist 202-483-7382

Students at Troutman Elementary School will be in for a treat—free vegan ice cream sandwiches from TeachKind, PETA’s humane education division—if the school accepts the group’s offer of a visit from Carly, PETA’s life-size mechanical cow voiced by Alicia Silverstone.

In a letter sent to Principal Kimberly Cressman today, TeachKind notes that Carly—who tells an age-appropriate story of being used by the dairy industry, having her calves taken from her so that her milk could be sold instead of nourishing them, and escaping with two cow friends to a sanctuary—would serve as a counterpoint to the school’s recent dairy industry–backed presentation that included a live cow. Among other facts, TeachKind would share that the dairy industry faces criticism over its production of methane and other greenhouse gases that contribute to the climate catastrophe and that up to 50 million Americans, including 80% of African Americans, can’t digest cow’s milk, which is also a leading food allergen among children.

“PETA had a cow when it heard that Troutman Elementary School students were only getting the dairy industry’s side of the story, which leaves out how dairy production tears cow families apart, pollutes the planet, and makes many people sick,” says PETA Senior Director of Youth Programs Marta Holmberg. “With a little help from Carly the mechanical cow, TeachKind can equip Troutman students with the facts they need to decide for themselves whether to join the millions of Americans who are switching to vegan milk.”

TeachKind—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to eat”—opposes speciesism, a human-supremacist worldview. The group offers free presentations, lessons, and other resources to help teachers add compassion to their curricula.

For more information, please visit TeachKind.org or follow the group on Facebook or Instagram.