Trapped for 24 hours to protest fur trim

This Tuesday, LUSH Cosmetics at Queen Street takes down its holiday window and replaces it with a shocking 24 hour installation that displays the gruesome realities of the fur industry.

Shannon Kornelsen, our Project Manager for Eastern Canada, will be ensnared in an enormous leg hold trap used to capture animals in the wild; after 24 hours of suffering, the volunteer will be “dispatched” (an industry term for the cruel and inhumane killing of an animal for their fur) by a “trapper.” LUSH has partnered with us to shed light onto the inhumane practices taking place in the fur industry. Check out the video summary that LUSH made:

For two weeks starting December 10th, in partnership with Fur-Bearer Defenders, LUSH is launching an anti-fur trim campaign in 24 Eastern Canadian shops to educate the public on how fur trim is a trap. LUSH is urging the public to not wear or purchase fur and fur trim and asking manufacturers of fur-trimmed apparel to be more transparent with customers and stop using fur altogether. Customers will also be invited to sign postcards to Dani Reiss, CEO of Canada Goose Inc. urging the company to stop using fur trim. As a business LUSH has sent Dani Reiss a letter asking him to stop turning a blind eye to the inhumane trapping of animals, and stop using fur.

“The goal of the campaign is to expose the truth about fur trim in a way that’s blunt without directly blaming the consumer, who usually knows very little about the soft, fluffy fur lining the edge of their hood,” says Lesley Fox, executive director The Association for the Protection of Fur-Bearing Animals. “This campaign will place the blame squarely where it belongs, the fur industry; by exposing the lies the industry uses to lure people into the ‘trap’ of purchasing its cruel and unnecessary products.”

Each year in Canada over three million animals are inhumanely killed for their fur. Fur is making a disturbing comeback in the guise of fur-trimmed jackets, hats, gloves, and boots, as part of a calculated attempt by the fur industry to keep its cruel product on the market. More than 730,000 animals are trapped in cruel traps each year, and are subject to unrelenting pain for hours, days, or even weeks, with many chewing off their own limbs to escape.

Traps are not selective, placing all animals and people at risk, including dogs, cats and numerous endangered species. Animals who survive long enough for the trapper to return will be “dispatched” by clubbing, choking, or stomping, so as to not damage their fur. Fully aware of these disturbing standard practices and how much they would horrify the average Canadian, the fur industry’s strategy has been to either sidestep the issue altogether or spread as much misinformation as possible.

For more information, visit furtrimisatrap.com. Photographs courtesy of Jo-Anne McArthur/We Animals.