Don’t smear proud pigs as pervs
From Animal Defenders of Westchester (ADOW)

We advocate on all animal protection and exploitation issues, including experimentation, factory farming, rodeos, breeders and traveling animal acts.

Don’t smear proud pigs as pervs

Letter as published on NYDailyNews.com
January 11, 2020

Published in NY Daily News, 1/11/20

Re: "Harvey Weinstein is a 'Pig in a poke" (cover, Jan. 7)

C’mon, Daily News, you’ve been one of the local media exponents of humane awareness.

Why use animal names to describe the worst behavior by humans? That awful phrase was used to describe little piglets disgracefully sold in sacks. Pigs are sociable, sentient, gentle, love their babies, are as intelligent as dogs, and are among the most mistreated animals on Earth. Pigs had nothing to do with the women who were allegedly raped by Weinstein; in fact, pigs and other animals are silent members of the #MeToo movement, since they are helpless victims of rape and beatings in secret every day on factory farms, as The News has reported.

Language is powerful. In this day and age, when people are speaking up and will no longer tolerate inflammatory, prejudicial language used about women, ethnic groups, gays, etc, you would be out of business if you used terms that inspire hatred to describe any of them; don’t do it to animals just because they can’t defend themselves — especially because they can’t defend themselves.

Kiley Blackman
Tuckahoe NY

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