The group, in a statement and a video released Wednesday narrated by British actor Stephen Fry, alleged that the fur from the bears killed is auctioned off and sometimes ends up in the hats worn by the soldiers of the King’s Guard.
“Every day we wear hats made from the skin of sacrificed bears brings dishonor to our country,” Fry said in the video.
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The King’s Guard takes off their bearskin hats as King Charles III is proclaimed King at the Memberships Council at St James’s Palace on Sept. 10, 2022 in London, Britain. (Joe Giddens – WPA Pool/Getty Images)
Bear baiting, a technique used by giant animal hunters with fatty foods, is banned in most U. S. states. It is open to the U. S. and the U. K. , but it’s still legal in Canada.
PETA said it takes the skin of “at least” one to make a single hat.
According to public records obtained by PETA U.K., the Ministry of Defense (MoD) bought 498 bearskin hats between 2017 and 2022.
Tourists and domestic visitors at Buckingham Palace observe in large numbers the conversion of the Royal Guards from the Coldstream Guards, the Coldstream Guard and the Scots Guards on July 9, 2023, in London, United Kingdom, France. (Mike Kemp/In Getty Shots)
PETA said Canada’s Department of National Defence claimed that all hats worn during its ceremonial guard were made from furs that were more than 20 years old.
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The animal rights organization argued that this still allows animals to be killed inhumanely “for ornamental purposes. “
The King’s Guard parades in their iconic bearskin hats. (Mike Kemp/Getty Images)
The PETA campaign called on the U.K. Ministry of Defense to switch to fake fur in the hope that it will curb the form of hunting.
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The organization says it has developed faux fur that meets the ministry’s criteria and submitted it for use in 2017 and 2023.
“Britain prides itself on being ‘sporty’, but those bears, lured with biscuits to the hunters’ hideout, have no chance of surviving,” Fry said in a statement.
Tradition is an excuse for cruelty.
“Tradition is never an excuse for cruelty, which is why I join the call for the Ministry of Defense to prevent the use of skins from slaughtered wild animals and switch to cruelty-free synthetic furs for Royal Guard caps. would be unconscionable and anti-British,” Fry said.
PETA supporters hold a banner that reads “Bearskin caps?It’s an old thing! Switch to simulate the rite of the Changing of the Guard in front of Windsor Castle on November 15, 2022 in Windsor, United Kingdom. (Mark Kerrison/In shots via Getty Images)
According to PETA, the MoD claimed that the bearskin pelts were a byproduct of a “cull” overseen by Canadian authorities.
“However, Canada’s federal and provincial governments have shown that such sacrifices do exist. The Canadian government issues ‘tags’ to hunting enthusiasts, who are then left free to bait and kill an allotted number of bears for recreational purposes and sell their skins,” PETA said. The Department of Defense then aligned itself with Furmark, an accreditation formula for the fur advertising industry that exists only to protect the interests of fur breeders and hunters and to publicize the (rapidly declining) use of fur in fashion. “
A military corps of workers arrives for the changing of the guard at Windsor Castle ahead of a tribute commemorating the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in the United States, Sept. 11, 2021. (Photo via STEVE PARSONS/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
Kate Werner, PETA’s senior director of campaigns, said the Defense Department must “whitewash and justify the killing of majestic bears” in the hat-making process.
“Rather than aligning itself with the values and morals of the fur-rejecting British public, and the example set by the defeated Queen Elizabeth when she refused to buy fur for her wardrobe, the MoD is aligning itself with an accreditation formula “that tries to paint green and justify the killing of majestic bears,” he said. Werner said, “PETA urges the Department of Defense to end its complicity in the killing of bears and fully stock pre-finished bear fur so it can be temporarily put into service. “
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In a statement to Fox News Digital, a PETA spokesperson said that, “tradition is no excuse for cruelty.”
“As PETA research shows, the bearskin caps worn during the U. K. ‘s Royal Guard and Canada’s Ceremonial Guard are the product of a violent blood-spree in which bears are lured with fatty foods and chocolates before being shot down with crossbow arrows. occasionally they flee only wounded. They endure slow and terribly painful deaths,” PETA said. “Whether a bear was killed or 20 years ago, wearing its fur sends the destructive message that killing Americans for a decoration is appropriate when it’s not. “.
Tradition excuses cruelty.
“Tradition does not excuse cruelty,” the organization said. “PETA is calling on UK and Canadian defense agencies to retire their bearskin caps and opt for cruelty-free hats from ECOPEL’s sumptuous faux fur, which is standing and waiting to go into service. “
Sarah Rumpf-Whitten is a breaking news writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business.
She is from Massachusetts and lives in Orlando, Florida.
Tips and stories can be sent to sarah. rumpf@fox. com and X:@s_rumpfwhitten.