‘Hell on Wheels’ Turkey Truck to Confront Thanksgiving Shoppers Outside Capitol Market
For Immediate Release:
November 19, 2024
Contact:
Maddy Missett 202-483-7382
Would grocery shoppers still buy turkeys for Thanksgiving if they saw—and heard—the screaming birds headed for slaughter? That’s exactly what will happen outside Capitol Market on Smith Street on Thursday, when “Hell on Wheels”—PETA’s new life-size, hyperrealistic turkey transport truck covered with images of the birds crammed into crates on their way to slaughter—will intercept shoppers before they make a purchase they can’t take back. The vexatious vehicle will bombard anyone within earshot with actual recorded sounds of the birds’ cries along with a subliminal message every 10 seconds suggesting that people go vegan. The local stop is part of the “Hell on Wheels” tour across 30 states, aiming to stoke compassion for the 46 million turkeys killed every year for Thanksgiving.
Where: Outside Capitol Market, 800 Smith St, Charleston
When: Thursday, November 21, 12 noon
“Turkeys are devoted parents who purr to their chicks and whose skin changes color to express their emotions, yet in the meat industry, they’re treated as unfeeling objects, crammed into filthy sheds, and slaughtered, often while they’re still conscious,” says PETA President Ingrid Newkirk. “PETA’s ‘Hell on Wheels’ truck is an appeal to Thanksgiving shoppers to give birds a break and stop the annual cycle of cruelty by choosing vegan this Thanksgiving and beyond.”
Why: In nature, turkeys spend their days caring for their young, building nests, foraging for food, taking dust baths, and roosting in trees, and they can live for over 10 years. But in the meat industry, turkeys’ throats are slit within their first six months of life—and tens of millions are killed each year for Thanksgiving and Christmas alone.
PETA notes that with a plethora of delicious vegan roasts—including Field Roast’s Hazelnut & Cranberry Plant-Based Roast, Gardein’s Plant-Based Turk’y Roast, and Tofurky’s Plant-Based Roast & Wild Rice Stuffing—available in stores and online, cruelty and death have no place on holiday tables.
PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to eat”—points out that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kits for people who need a lesson in kindness. PETA’s free vegan starter kit and “ThanksVegan” guide are filled with tips to help anyone looking to make the switch. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow PETA on X, Facebook, or Instagram.
