Lizard Saying ‘I Am Not a Handbag’ Deemed ‘Too Graphic’ for Chicago Bus Shelters

PETA Ad Would Have Urged Black-Friday Shoppers to Steer Clear of Exotic-Skin Shoes, Belts, and Bags

For Immediate Release:
November 22, 2016

Contact:
Sophia Charchuk 202-483-7382

Despite not depicting any blood or gore, a PETA ad showing a lizard next to the words “I Am Not a Handbag, a Belt, or a Pair of Shoes. I Am a Living Being—Just Like You” has been rejected for being “too graphic.”

PETA had intended to run the ad on Chicago bus shelters in time for the Black Friday shopping rush but was told by an ad representative that the ad’s text—and specifically, the line “[A]nimals are made of flesh and blood and can suffer and feel pain”—would be too frightening for children.

“The public has every right to know that thinking, feeling reptiles are hacked apart and skinned alive for belts, bags, and shoes,” says PETA Senior Vice President Lisa Lange. “PETA urges shoppers of all ages to reject cruelty to animals by buying vegan clothing and accessories on Black Friday and every day.”

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to wear”—notes that lizards are cut apart with machetes, snakes are nailed to trees, and alligators and crocodiles are impaled with metal rods, all for exotic-skin accessories. Many of these animals are skinned alive.

A growing number of retailers—including Ann Inc., H&M, Topshop, Adolfo Domínguez, Mango, bebe, Cole Haan, Nike, Adidas, and many more—have banned all sales of exotic skins.

For more information, please visit PETA.org.