Every single year around 55 million people perish on this planet. Every single year over one billion bunnies are captured, raised inhumanely, and killed. Every single year, 57 billion dollars are made in the beauty industry at the hands, at the fur, and at the cost of these animals. That means that on average for each person that dies about twenty rabbits are killed. To insure minimal damage to their naturally beautiful coats, they are either put through horrific electrocution or their necks are snapped.

               The death may seem quick, perhaps even painless, but the lives prior are not. Raised in small, condensed cages that they are never allowed leave, they live in constant physical and especially mental pain. Their fur is stripped from them and then used to make those extravagant coats seen walking down the runway, sitting in our closets, and displayed in shop windows to be admired by anyone who walks by. But what is there to admire? The process for a warm fur coat is neither admirable, nor short.

               Laboratories around the world use innocent animals to test the lotions, face washes, perfumes, and makeup that most people use everyday. Forced down their throats, dropped in their eyes, and inhaled into their lungs, these chemicals are put onto and into the lives of these animals, to insure that our lives, our faces and our health remain safe. The real issue isn’t that people are in favor of this and want to torture animals but rather that we are all just simply unaware (“Testing Product”).

               People for Ethical Treatment of Animals, commonly known as PETA, has been around since 1980 and has become the largest animal rights organization in the world. They will go through any means to spread awareness. Anything from a cruelty free fashion show, involving faux leathers, to serious sit down meetings with high end brands, congressmen, and scientists, to merely having protesters with signs standing up for the rights of creatures unable to do it for themselves, this organization is one of few who seem to be making an effort and a difference. They have inspired designers, labels, and companies to change and become a part of this movement.

               PETA’s largest campaign “Rather Go Naked,” which represents the fight against fur, strives to bring awareness to their cause, asking celebrities to pose in the nude. The photos are matched with slogans such as “Fur? I’d Rather Go Naked” or “Be comfortable in your own skin and let animals keep theirs.” Most people know Khloe Kardashian, Stephen “Steve-O” Glover, Pamela Anderson, and Cindy Crawford as movie stars and models alike, but they are now using their celebrity to make their mark on the problem by utilizing their bodies and influences over those of innocent creatures (Lodi).  

               Stella McCartney, a renowned fashion designer, became very invested in this cause. She, being the daughter of a former Beatle member and a known vegan, has become a huge influencer amongst the industry. As Hafsa Lodi puts it, “McCartney believes that the onus is on both consumers and designers to counter the use of real fur. Part of the reason she decided to create the material, she tells us, was to make the industry aware of the fact that, with a little bit of effort, alternative materials can be found that resemble fur and are also luxe. This way, the desire for actual fur, and consequent mistreatment of animals, can be eliminated.”

               Clinique, Estee Lauder, Maybelline, Bobbi Brown, M.A.C., Benefit, Clarins, and many more companies just like them still have their products tested on living beings. Little mice, bunnies, guinea pigs, and hamsters are born and raised in laboratories where they are neither loved nor cared for but merely seen as some creature that will make sure the lotion that makes your skin feel smooth and moisturized doesn't give you a rash in three days. The problem isn't that we need to find alternatives, because there are already plenty of them, it’s that these companies simply will not change their way in order to save these poor innocent animals. As PETA states, “Instead of measuring how long it takes a chemical to burn the cornea of a rabbit’s eye, manufacturers can now drop that chemical onto cornea-like 3D tissue structures produced from human cells. Likewise, human skin cultures can be grown and purchased for skin irritation testing.” The question is, do they care enough to do so?

               There is no excuse for this issue to have remained so real and prominent given all the resources and research offered. There is so much being done, but still so much being left behind. We as the young, we as the next generation, we as the influencers need to be taking a stand for the future we plan to lead. As Jason Wu, an extraordinary designer said, “The fur trade focuses on young designers like PETA focuses on young consumers. It’s a tug of war that has been going on for years, which explains why fur is still visible on runways but not so much in retail. For the average young person, fur is about as desirable as acne.” Perhaps with a little more effort our skin can be acne free, and our products cruelty free.