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Parents at an elementary school in Woodlands Hills are livid after PETA was caught passing out pamphlets to children that contained graphic images of animal abuse at farms.
Outraged parents at Calabash Charter Academy are now considering taking legal action against the animal rights group, CBS 2 reports. The pamphlet in question, titled "A Cow's Life," looks innocent enough on the cover, featuring a quaint-looking cartoon cow wandering around in the woods. But inside, the pamphlets contained inserted images of ultra-graphic scenes depicting cows being mutilated and tortured. Parents said the images were traumatizing to their children.
Reps from PETA were there because the school was playing host to a show that teaches kids about dairy farming, according to CBS. The protest was organized by a parent who is an avowed member of the group, the Daily News reported.
Some parents were more vocal about their children being exposed to the disgusting and depressing reality of factory farming:
“My 6-year-old daughter was handed one of these comics, saw the insert of the mutilated cow that I ripped away right away, she started flipping through it and saw pictures of baby cows being electrocuted, factory farms with machetes, I mean, just graphically horrifying images for a 6 year old,” Borsheim said. “The images are pretty graphic,” parent Shawn Belschner said. “They’re of mutilated cows, infected cows, cows being dehorned, cows in bad conditions. I don’t think it’s good for any child.”
Meanwhile, a LAUSD spokeswoman has said that the group had every right to be there.
"The fact they handed out their brochure, we were not expecting,” said LAUSD spokeswoman Monica Carazo. “Unfortunately, what can we do? If they are on the sidewalk and doing this, it’s a public place."
To be completely fair, it's important for everyone, even children, to be mindful of where their meat or dairy comes from. But showing six-year-olds pictures of infected cow udders really isn't the right way to do it. We want to give PETA the benefit of the doubt that it truly was a mix-up.
But then again, they're also responsible for this.
[h/t Jezebel]
