Newcastle Uni. Student Wins Autographed Guitar In PETA Contest
Animal Rights Group Teams Up With Punk Rock Band Goldfinger to Urge Kids to “Question Authority”
For Immediate Release:
29 December 2004
Contact:
Fiona Pereira 020 7357 9229, ext 232
Newcastle – When Newcastle University student Laurie Swain caught the Goldfinger gig at the Leeds Festival last year, he wrestled with dozens of fans in the mosh pit to grab the guitar that lead singer John Feldmann threw into the audience, only to have it taken away from him by a gig technician. But Laurie got his guitar in the end – he recently beat all the other contestants to win an autographed Goldfinger guitar, the grand prize in PETA’s contest to launch its new youth Web site, peta2.co.uk.
An ethical vegetarian who counts among his favourite Goldfinger songs the irreverent anti-hunting anthem “F*** Ted Nugent,” Laurie looks forward to “making my mates extremely jealous” by displaying his guitar in his room at uni. Laurie, who was moved to become a vegetarian after reading animal rights leaflets in school, is a fan of both Goldfinger’s music and the animal rights message in songs like “Free Me”, a haunting plea on behalf of animals killed for food that can be downloaded on peta2.co.uk. “I think the song is awesome, really profound and delivers a good message”, says Laurie. “The video is good as it sticks in your memory and shows people what really happens on factory farms and in slaughterhouses.”
This isn’t the first time that Goldfinger frontman John Feldmann has pitched in to help PETA promote animal rights. He has also recorded a PETA radio PSA urging his legions of young fans to stop eating the “garbage” that’s being fed to them by the meat industry, liberated lobsters from supermarket tanks and participated in protests against cruelty to chickens by fast food giant KFC at every stop of a recent tour of the U.S. and Europe.
“Today’s young people are always ready to question the status quo”, says peta2.co.uk Co-ordinator Fiona Pereira. “Kids have the power and the energy to bring about enormous change, and peta2.co.uk gives them the tools to do it.”
Also featured on peta2.co.uk are celebrity interviews, bulletin boards, edgy merchandise, downloadable screensavers, and chances to win great prizes like free concert tickets, CDs and more.
For more information, please visit peta2.co.uk.
An image of Laurie Swain with the guitar is available on request
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