Animal Activist Spotlight: Pamela Anderson

   Pamela Anderson

  Pam Anderson has been my all-time favorite animal rights advocate for the past 6 years. Anderson is a vegan, and an active member of the animal protection organization PETA, the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. According to her first book Star, she first became a vegetarian in her early teens when she saw her father cleaning a deer he had hunted.Her role in PETA's ads has helped raise awareness of the exploitation of animals. and One of Anderson's campaigns as a member of PETA has been against the use of fur. In 1999, Anderson received the first Linda McCartney Memorial Award for animal rights protectors, in recognition of her campaign.

     Her campaigns against KFC's unethical treatment of livestock is extraordinary. In 2001, Anderson released a letter in support of PETA's campaign against Kentucky Fried Chicken, stating "What KFC does to 750 million chickens each year is not civilized or acceptable." She later made a video about KFC's treatment of chickens. In January 2006, Anderson requested that the Governor of Kentucky remove a bust of Colonel Sanders, the founder of KFC, from display but her request was refused. In February 2006, Anderson decided to boycott the Kentucky Derby because of its support for KFC. 

    Seal hunting in Canada is one of her major concerns. In March 2006, Anderson asked to speak to Prime Minister Stephen Harper about the annual seal hunt but her request was refused. In May 2006, she petitioned random individuals on the street for their opinion on the Canadian Seal Hunt. In December, 2009, Anderson, photographed in a t-shirt with a drawn picture of a seal pup on it, was featured in a new ad campaign for PETA. She appears next to the headline "Save the Seals" in the ad and urges the public to help end "Canada's annual seal slaughter." She joined forces with PETA in a campaign for the boycott of fruit-juice maker POM. The "Pom Horrible Campaign" has resulted in the company halting animal tests. Pam Anderson continuously participates in charity events for animals, including a wildlife rehabilitation release of pelicans in 2011. 

     This woman is both courageous and compassionate, lending her heart out to animals whenever she can. I was in first grade when I first saw a photo of her in the Star Magazine wearing a PETA shirt and found her commendable for her love of animals. Her lead in animal rights caused me to become a member of my own animal organizations, including Sierra Nevada, and WWF. I give her an immense amount of credit for crossing multiple barriers in order to relieve the suffering of animals worldwide. I contribute this post in thanks for her efforts as an animal rights advocate.