Meyers 1

Maddie Meyers

Storer

English 3 H

25 November 2019

We Buy, They Die

English philosopher and social reformer Jeremy Bentham once said of animals, “The

question is not, Can they reason? Nor Can they talk? But, Can they suffer?” Animals who are

held in cages their whole lives, before being brutally murdered for their carcasses, can, in fact

suffer. Laura Friedman’s proposed bill AB44 would ban the sale and production of new fur

items, excluding animals that are not generally killed for their fur, if passed. This bill should pass

because fur has a negative environmental impact, and because it would end the unnecessary

animal cruelty that is necessary for fur production.

Fur products greatly harm the environment. According to numerous studies, the

production of fur requires chemicals such as chromium VI, alkylphenol, ethoxylates, azo dyes,

and chlorinated phenols which are major pollutants (Environmental Protection Agency). In fact,

according to The World Bank, fur dressing, which is the use of chemicals to prevent rotting,

ranks in the top five industries responsible for the most heavy-metal pollution produced

worldwide. Many advocates of AB44 claim that fur is more environmentally-friendly than other,

less-durable materials because it is long-lasting, meaning that new clothing does not have to be

produced to replace it. However, its production causes such great pollution that the minimal long
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term benefits are outweighed. Additionally, those who oppose AB44 claim that because the

animals traditionally killed for their fur are not endangered, its production is sustainable and

should be allowed to continue. However, this logic is flawed because in the past, fur trade has

been shown to be a leading cause of endangerment and extinction of animals including the fur

seal, vicuna, otter, and various spotted cats. Is it worth the risk of driving yet another species to

extinction until there is nothing to remember it by except its carcass hanging around a buyer’s

shoulders? Creating fur products hurts not only the planet, but also the fur’s original owner.

Why must compassion end where animals begin? If humans were systematically shoved

into cages the sizes of their bodies for the duration of their lives before being brutally killed

through means of bludeoning, anal and genital electrocution, strangulation, or hanging, only to

later be skinned in order to make a fashion statement, there would be unimaginable outrage. Yet

this is how animals raised for their fur are treated every day (Times of San Diego). The fur

belongs to the animals wearing it, and treating them in this way simply to strip them of it later is

completely immoral. President Trump recently signed a bill into place that makes animal cruelty

a federal felony, yet the United States government still allows it in cases of fur production

(Preventing Animal Cruelty and Torture Act). This coexistence of animal rights legislation and

the fur industry defies logic, because fur production is animal cruelty in its truest form. It could

be argued that this cruelty is necessary to humans because of the warmth fur provides, but

modern technology has created a multitude of alternatives that render real fur unnecessary. Even

if a person desires fur for its aesthetic, there are faux options that provide the same effect without

harming a living creature.

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Producing fur products is an ongoing cause of cruelty that is in no way necessary. By

passing bill AB44 California would move in the right direction,towards a cleaner environment

and a dramatic decrease in unnecessary animal cruelty. Neither the earth nor animals can speak,

but humans can; thus, they are endowed with the responsibility to protect those without one. It is

for that reason that people must speak out against such injustices towards the defenseless, and

that it is so vital to take a stand against an industry that causes countless animals unimaginable

suffering.
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Works Cited

“Bill Text.” Bill Text - AB-44 Fur Products: Prohibition.,

https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=201920200AB44.

“Endangered Animals and the Fur Trade.” Welcome to the New UFT.org!,

https://www.uft.org/get-involved/union-committees/academic/humane-education/humane-

science-curricula/secondary-school-units/endangered-animals-and-fur-trade.

“Letter: To Protect Animals, Legislature Must Pass AB 44 and Ban Fur Sales - Times of San

Diego.” Google, Google,

https://www.google.com/amp/s/timesofsandiego.com/opinion/2019/04/11/to-protect-animals-

legislature-must-pass-ab-44-and-ban-fur-sales/amp/.

Zaveri, Mihir. “President Trump Signs Federal Animal Cruelty Bill Into Law.” The New York

Times, The New York Times, 25 Nov. 2019,

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/25/us/politics/trump-animal-cruelty-bill.html.