‘I’m ME, Not MEAT!’ Fish Tells Ferry Riders in PETA Ads
Staten Island Ferry Ads Urge Everyone to Keep Aquatic Animals off Their Plates This Summer
For Immediate Release:
July 3, 2018
Contact:
Audrey Shircliff 202-483-7382
Just in time for the busy Fourth of July holiday, PETA has placed ads on the Staten Island Ferry that encourage everyone to celebrate independence for all—including fish. The ads, available here, show a fish swimming underwater next to the words “I’m ME, Not MEAT. See the Individual. Go Vegan.”
One ad is located in each of the Molinari-class (Guy V. Molinari, Senator John J. Marchi, Spirit of America) and Barberi-class (Andrew J. Barberi and Samuel I. Newhouse) boats. In addition, a scrolling text ad in the ferry terminal at Whitehall Street reads, “Fish feel pain. Sea LIFE, not seafood. Visit PETA.org for fish-free recipes.”
“Just as humans do, fish feel pain and fear and value their own lives—and they deserve our compassion,” says PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman. “This summer, PETA’s ferry ads are urging everyone to choose vegan meals and grant sensitive fish their freedom from being suffocated, crushed, and cut open.”
PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to eat”—notes that more fish are killed for food each year than all other animals combined, yet they have no legal protection from abuse. Fish slowly suffocate or are crushed to death when they’re dragged from the oceans in huge nets, and the throats and stomachs of those who survive are cut open on the decks of fishing boats.
Going vegan spares other animals suffering, too: In today’s meat and dairy industries, chickens’ throats are cut while they’re still conscious, piglets are castrated without painkillers, and mother cows are separated from their beloved babies shortly after birth. Vegans are also less prone to suffering from heart disease, obesity, cancer, and diabetes than meat-eaters are.
PETA offers a free vegan starter kit full of recipes, tips, and more. For more information, please visit PETA.org.