PETA Purchases Ads To Protest Short Hills Mall Store

SHORT HILLS, NJ — Weeks after protesting the grand opening event for Canada Goose's new store inside The Mall At Short Hills, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has launched a new "Wear Something Vegan" ad campaign.

The transit ads have been placed on a series of public transportation buses around the mall urging people to steer clear of Canada Goose coats and all other items made from fur, wool, and down. Descriptions of the ads—which will be up for a month—are below:

• A mother fox and her baby alongside the words "We're Individuals. We're Not Coats or Trim. Wear Something Vegan."
• A sheep alongside the words "We're Individuals. We're Not Sweaters. Wear Something Vegan."
• Two geese alongside the words "We're Individuals. We're Not Down Jackets. Wear Something Vegan."

According to PETA, the group originally attempted to place its provocative anti–Canada Goose ad showing three dead, bloody animals—two geese and a coyote—alongside the words "This Is the Rest of Your Canada Goose Jacket," but the New Jersey Transit Corporation rejected the ad.

"Just like us, the geese and coyotes who are tormented and killed on Canada Goose's watch feel pain and fear and value their lives," said PETA Campaign Manager Christina Sewell. "PETA's moving ads will encourage shoppers to leave items that stripped animals of their lives on the rack and opt for chic and compassionate vegan outerwear instead."

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that "animals are not ours to wear"—also released a video exposé where they claim that workers at a Canada Goose down supplier rounded up terrified geese who piled on top of one another in an attempt to escape, causing suffocation and death.

WHY IS PETA PROTESTING?

PETA has charged that Canada Goose "misleads the public by claiming that the birds it uses for down get freedom from fear, pain, distress, and physical discomfort."
According to PETA:

"As if it weren't bad enough for outerwear company Canada Goose to use fur trim from coyotes caught in steel traps and shot or bludgeoned to death, we now know that the company is filling its jackets with down from abused birds. A PETA eyewitness exposé of a Canada Goose down supplier reveals that workers rounded up panicked geese, grabbing and carrying them by the neck, as they struggled with their entire weight hanging from their necks, and crammed them into densely packed cages for transport to slaughter. Some geese were left in the feces-covered crates for up to 24 hours without food or water, including during a trip down the highway to the slaughterhouse lasting over five hours."

A variety of top brands—including HoodLamb, The North Face, Helly Hansen, Save the Duck, and Wuxly Movement—sell warm, stylish coats that no animal had to suffer and die for, PETA said in a release.

For their part, the Mall at Short Hills has been supportive of Canada Goose, posting photos on social media.

The Mall at Short Hill General Manager Jamie Cox declined comment for this story. Representatives for Canada Goose did not return messages for comment on this story.

(Photo courtesy of PETA)

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