Lady Freethinker has sent a letter to U.S. lawmakers — signed by 43 other animal protection organizations worldwide — urging them to take action to stop the horrifying spread of online “crush” videos in which cats, monkeys, and other animals are brutally tortured and killed.
The letter has been mailed to congressional leaders and other congress members, calling on them to publicly condemn these videos through a joint resolution and to urge governments around the world to criminalize these heinous acts. It also presses for legislation that would hold online platforms accountable for hosting such material.
Click here to read the letter.
The appeal follows recent shocking investigations from CNN and the BBC that exposed the rise of global cat torture networks. According to CNN, “Data gathered by Feline Guardians showed a 500% increase in new torture videos added to the Chinese Telegram groups they monitor between June 2024 and February 2025 – with a new video being uploaded on average around every 2.5 hours.”
The videos — which show cats being mutilated, burned, electrocuted, drowned, and even blended alive — typically come from countries that lack animal protection laws, like China, yet are frequently financed by buyers in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia.
Baby macaques are also frequent victims of horrific cruelty on camera, as exposed by multiple investigations by Lady Freethinker and Action for Primates.
LFT has been fighting for years to end animal ‘crush’ videos, including organizing multiple protests and gathering more than 130,000 signatures to stop the proliferation of cat torture online.
It’s time for lawmakers to take action and help ensure animals across the globe are protected from such brutal treatment for “amusement” and profit.
