This Thanksgiving, Let’s Put an End to Centuries of Violence.
If you viewed our Art Installation at the University of Chicago know that:
1 flag represents ~100,000 turkeys killed every year for Thanksgiving alone
In total, ~46 million turkeys die every year on Thanksgiving
In just a few weeks, American families will gather around tables to reflect on the year and celebrate everything they are grateful for. Few will notice that the centerpiece of the holiday festivities – the carcass of a bird that once had thoughts, feelings and emotions – represents the height of human cruelty.
Life for a farmed turkey begins with confusion and crowding amongst thousands of other chicks, none of whom will ever meet their mothers or experience normal growth and development. These sentient creatures face a life of imprisonment in dark, dirty, crowded sheds. To prevent the turkeys from killing each other when they become irritable and aggressive, the industry chops off pieces of their beaks and feet without pain relief.
Baby turkeys grow unnaturally quickly. Photo by Andrew Skowron.
As the weeks pass, these animals grow unnaturally quickly due to genetic modifications which cause them to reach cripplingly large proportions. Just like in humans, obesity can cause turkeys to die prematurely of heart attacks and other life-threatening conditions.
This Thanksgiving, think of all the basic comforts that have been denied to the billions of animals with whom we share this planet. The breeding, confinement, torture and slaughter of our fellow creatures is an atrocity of truly unimaginable proportions. For a farmed turkey, pig, cow, chicken, or fish, there is truly nothing to be thankful for.
The meat industry subjects these creatures to filthy conditons.
It’s in our power to end this violence and create a better world for both human and nonhuman animals. By going vegan, you can eliminate your contribution to animal exploitation and abuse, while reducing your contribution to pollution, climate change, and the risk of new pandemics.
So be thankful that YOU have the ability to solve this problem, if you so choose. It may take courage not to join in the normalized cruelty of animal consumption on Thanksgiving. But the suffering a turkey endures before winding up on the Thanksgiving table outweighs any inconvenience or annoyance involved in simply changing our habits.
If you believe animals should be treated with compassion and respect, there is no excuse for continuing to participate in such a cruel and unjust institution. Give our fellow creatures something to be thankful for this November, and go vegan. 🙂
This Thanksgiving, try Tofurkey instead.
