PETA urges celebs to boycott Armani

PETA have called upon Oscar nominees to boycott Armani for using fur.

Washington, Feb 04: Activists of People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) have called upon Oscar nominees to stay away from fashion giant Armani because it uses fur for designs.Chiefs at the non-profit organisation penned a full-page advertisement in trade magazine Daily Variety, urging those nominated at the Academy Awards not to sport the Italian company’s designs for the ceremony.

"No designer cosies up to the red carpet crowd more than Giorgio Armani, and this year PETA is urging Oscar nominees to hang-up on him when he comes calling,” Contactmusic quoted PETA spokesman as saying. "Just a year after the designer told Time magazine, `I spoke with the people from PETA, and they showed me some materials that convinced me not to use fur,` Armani`s latest collections feature fur-trimmed jackets, fur-hemmed skirts, floral-printed fur coats, and even rabbit-fur-trimmed snowsuits for toddlers,” the rep said. An insider added: "We have written individually to every Oscar nominee, asking them to shun Armani on the red carpet. "Armani uses mostly rabbit fur from French and Chinese fur farms, both of which were targets of recent undercover investigations. Footage shows rabbits crammed into filthy cages that are encrusted with urine and faeces. Workers at the farm in China pull rabbits from cages by their ears and shoot them in the head with electric stun guns while the animals kick and scream. The rabbits are then hung upside down and decapitated." The PETA spokesman concluded: "We’ve met with Armani and his staff over the past few years and have found that they are moved more by what celebrities think than about animal suffering or protests. We hope he will soon join designers such as Calvin Klein, Stella MCCartney, Ralph Lauren, Vivienne Westwood, and Tommy Hilfiger - who are 100 per cent fur-free." ANI