14 DAY TRIAL // The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) organization often relies on anything else in its many campaigns for the rights of animals than on the shock factor. Many past ads and commercials have been either banned or drew a lot of controversy precisely because PETA thought them out this way. The latest, featuring swimsuit model Joanna Krupa, is no exception, Fox411 reports.
Krupa is the latest celebrity to team up with PETA and speak up against certain practices that are harming to animals: in this case, buying a dog from a breeder, as opposed to adopting one from one of the many shelters available in each town. The ad, which was just recently unveiled, shows Kruppa covered by a metal crucifix – and the Catholic Church is none too happy about it.
“It’s totally inappropriate. It’s another instance of disrespect toward Christianity and another example of the kind of abuse that would never occur with any other major religion, because the outcry would be so immediate and so loud that the people behind it would immediately retreat,” Deal Hudson, editor at the online magazine InsideCatholic, and only one of the many angry voices that have been heard after the unveiling of the ad, says, as cited by Fox411.
Others agree, adding that PETA needs to learn its values before asking others to do the same. “The fact is that cats and dogs are a lot safer in pet stores than they are in the hands of PETA employees. Moreover, pet stores don’t rip off Christian iconography and engage in cheap irreligious claims. PETA is a fraud. It also has a long and disgraceful record of exploiting Christian and Jewish themes to hawk its ugly services. Those who support this organization sorely need a reality check. They also need a course in Ethics 101,” Catholic League President Bill Donohue says.
Krupa herself has not kept silent throughout the scandal, just hours ago issuing a statement to say that it is she who is shocked at the reaction of representatives of the Catholic Church. She too is a Catholic and would never dream of bringing offense to the Church. Moreover, she says, she’s only doing what other Catholics should also be doing, namely her best in preventing the further killing of innocent animals.