Gucci & St. Laurent Ban Fur But Continue to Use Reptile Skins

​worldanimalnews.com/take-action-urge-gucci-saint-laurent-to-ban-violently-produced-exotic-skins-from-their-high-fashion-lines/

The Kering Group, which manages big name brands St. Laurent & Gucci, has taken steps to eliminate cruelty in their fashion line after announcing a ban on fur in future lines. Through this commitment, a cell-cultivated leather startup is also being funded which would further eliminate cruelty within the industry and reduce leather made from plastic. Despite this, the group continues to brutalize reptiles for bags, wallets, trims, and purses made from skins. 

Snakes, monitor lizards, alligators, crocodiles, etc. are brutalized in this industry for novelty, high fashion products. I consider them novelty products because they're unnecessary to us in that we could easily buy wallets, purses, or bags made from completely synthetic materials. The utilization of reptiles for their skins is completely unnecessary and in this case, sends out mixed messaging about the Kering Group's commitment to cruelty-free fashion. One cannot condemn fur while skinning snakes & alligators, it's hypocritical.

Reptiles are either hunted, plucked from the wild, or bred in filthy breeding facilities where they are denied even the most basic luxuries they'd experience in the wild. Snakes are decapitated or strung up by their heads before their skin is violently ripped from them. Snakes' slow metabolism means that they experience pain for long periods of time, even after being decapitated. Lizards experience a similar fate, often being decapitated before having their skin ripped from their bodies. Alligators and crocodiles spend their miserable lives in cramped, filthy facilities until they are incapacitated and have their skins ripped off, sometimes even while still conscious.

In a society that is shifting towards a more cruelty-free, sustainable future, there is simply no place for the brutalization of reptiles for fashion. It's incredibly hypocritical and ignorant to ban fur for its cruelty to animals while skinning snakes, lizards, and alligators. When you consider that the products created from these skins are all novelty items and not necessities, it's even more sickening that we continue to exploit them for fashion. If the Kering Group is going to truly head towards an entirely cruelty-free brand, the reptile skinning is going to have to stop.

Follow the link at the top of this post and head to the original story from World Animal News. They've provided a form to fill out and send to the Kering Group urging them to stop killing reptiles for fashion. 

HAPPY VEG