Stella McCartney Says ‘It’s About F*cking Time’ to End Leather as She Teams Up With PETA US for Racy NYFW Action

10.09.2024

New York – Stella McCartney and PETA US took the group’s iconic “I’d Rather Go Naked” campaign to a whole nude level during New York Fashion Week today to lay bare a bold message: It’s about f*cking time to end the use of leather. The risqué display kicked off in the window of McCartney’s flagship store in SoHo, where actor Caylee Cowan and other animal allies gathered – covered only by strategically placed signs reading, “No Leather Ever,” and briefs by Karla Welch’s The Period Company – before marching to Washington Square Park. The action marked the launch of Stella McCartney’s Winter 2024 campaign and PETA’s “No Leather Ever” pledge, which calls on consumers to take a stand against the violence of the toxic global leather industry by vowing to ditch animal skins.

Photos from the action are available here.

“I have never used leather in any of my collections, and PETA was one of the first organisations to champion my vision for a cruelty-free fashion industry,” says McCartney. “I couldn’t have chosen a more perfect partner for launching my Winter 2024 campaign with a very activist spirit – because it really is about f*cking time we ended the use of leather.”

“I’m happy to bare some skin if it helps animals keep theirs,” says Cowan. “Stella McCartney is proving once again how stylish vegan fashion can be, and I’m proud to partner with her and PETA to help move the industry towards a kinder future.”

“Stella McCartney has pushed fashion forward with creativity, innovation, and compassion, while some other designers remain stuck in the Stone Age – still making clothes from animal skins,” says PETA founder Ingrid Newkirk. “PETA loves partnering with Stella to chart an ethical, sustainable future for the fashion industry together and to urge everyone to leave leather on the rack – or, better yet, on an animal’s back.”

“It’s About F*cking Time” – Stella McCartney’s Winter 2024 campaign slogan – is inspired by a custom tank top worn by the designer during Sir Paul McCartney’s inauguration into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1999 and has been reinterpreted as a rallying cry calling for an end to the violence and environmental destruction of leather. Every year, more than a billion animals are killed by the global leather industry. Cows killed for leather may be skinned and dismembered while they’re still conscious – after they endure castration, branding, and tail docking, all without painkillers. In addition to the horrific cruelty the leather industry inflicts on animals, it also contributes to the climate catastrophe, land devastation, deforestation, pollution, water contamination, and loss of biodiversity.

PETA – whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to wear” – opposes speciesism, a human-supremacist worldview. For more information, please visit PETA.org.uk or follow the group on Facebook, X, TikTok, or Instagram.

Contact:

Sascha Camilli +44 207-923-6244; [email protected]

 

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