Lady Freethinker, in collaboration with In Defense of Animals (IDA), Animal Defenders International (ADI), and Feline Guardians, mobilized to protest the horrific cruelty inflicted on cats for gruesome online “crush” videos and memorialize the precious lives lost. This demonstration outside the Chinese Consul General in Los Angeles on May 18th was part of a global day of action.
Carmen Gulotta/Lady Freethinker
Our message was clear: the cruelty must end. We are calling on officials in China, where the videos typically originate, to develop laws to protect cats from this heinous abuse and thoroughly investigate the sadistic torture rings responsible.
Following the protest, advocates shared stories of the victims and offered flowers in a solemn memorial. A banner showed the faces of hundreds of the cats tormented.
Nina Jackel, founder of LFT, spoke to the crowd about a video that severely impacted her. She spoke of a social media post with a cat writhing in pain in a pool of blood after all four limbs were severed. Deeply affected by this haunting image, Jackel paid homage to this defenseless cat at the memorial, along with all of the victims of this torture.
Carmen Gulotta/Lady Freethinker
Chinese-Americans in attendance at the Los Angeles event translated protest speeches and memorial stories and informational fliers distributed at the event were in both English and Chinese.
Former California State Assembly Member Paul Fong participated in San Francisco’s protest, stating, “You’re here to try to save the cats from torture. It’s a noble effort and I’m here to help you do that.”
Following the global day of action, activists returned to the Los Angeles consulate office with over 175,000 petition signatures to present to Chinese authorities, urging them to create legislation to stop this horrific social media cat torture.
Carmen Gulotta/Lady Freethinker
“Even though 70 million cats live in Chinese households, the country still lacks a law to protect these beloved family members from torture, mutilation, and killing,” said Nina Jackel. “LFT is calling on Consul General Guo Shaochun to advocate for a life-saving animal protection law in China and take swift action to end these sadistic groups who are terrorizing cats on camera.”
With 21 demonstrations in 14 countries held on the global day of action, the coalition against cat torture made their voices heard. Lady Freethinker is so grateful to all who signed our petition for these innocent cats and for everyone who took part in this important event. Together, we will keep fighting against animal cruelty worldwide.
