Will Pope Francis Go Vegan to Protect the Planet?
After Pope Francis encouraged world leaders at the United Nations (UN) climate summit, COP26, to take “radical” action to address the climate crisis, PETA sent His Holiness a letter urging him to set a “powerful example” for people around the world by going vegan.
Go Vegan for the Planet
Going vegan is the single most effective action any individual can take to curb the climate crisis. Each person who goes vegan reduces their carbon footprint from food by up to 73%.
The UN states that animal agriculture is responsible for about 14.5% of global greenhouse-gas emissions – which, by some estimates, is greater than all the world’s transportation systems combined – and that a global shift to vegan eating is needed to offset the worst effects of the climate crisis.
Go Vegan for Animals
Every time we consume meat, eggs, or dairy, we directly harm animals.
Female cows exploited for milk are forcibly impregnated over and over. Their babies are torn away from them so that humans can steal the milk that nature intended for their calves.
When their bodies are spent, they are crammed into crowded lorries for a terrifying trip to the slaughterhouse. Their brothers and sons as well as pigs, chickens, sheep, and other animals bred for their flesh or eggs endure an equally horrific existence.
Each vegan spares nearly 200 animals a year this misery and a petrifying death.
© casperhilt
It’s Time for the Pope to Ditch Meat
St Francis of Assisi exemplified compassion for animals, calling them our brothers and sisters under God. We hope Pope Francis will take the next step by rejecting the cruel practices of killing animals for their flesh and stealing their eggs and milk – and opting for nutritious vegan foods instead.
PETA named Pope Francis our Person of the Year in 2015 in honour of his treatise, Laudato Si’, in which he stressed the importance of treating animals with kindness. He wrote, “Every act of cruelty towards any creature is ‘contrary to human dignity’.”
How About You?
Show compassion to all, regardless of their religion, species, or any other category used to justify discrimination. Take our World Vegan Month Challenge this November. It’s easy and fun, and we’re here to help you every step of the way.
