A vegan's take on PETA's Unhappy Meal campaign against McDonald's

August 12, 2009

n-PETAs-Unhappy-Meal-campaign-against-McDonalds

At most of PETA's antics, I often shake my head and mutter, " those silly PETA

people. " With their latest McDonald's subversive ad tactic, I don't see them as

being so silly. In an effort to expose McDonald's cruelty to animals, they're

using pictures of a menacing, knife-wielding Ronald the Clown. They hand these

boxes and labels to families about to enter the restaurant.

The sheer irony is from the complaints of the parents, who claim that this PETA

picture is simply too gruesome for children. Suppressing reality and calling its

unveiling as inappropriate seems to ignore the overall problem of the reality

itself. In this case, parents complaining that children get a tiny glimpse into

the truth behind their Happy Meals completely ignore the overarching problem of

how animals are torturously slaughtered.

Now, I get that it's totally obnoxious to bombard a family by handing out

disturbing images to unassuming children. If I was a parent and someone handed

my child a postcard of an emaciated child with a missing limb who works in a

sweatshop, I would be angered. My child did nothing to warrant their peace of

mind being compromised. It would, however, cause me to think about my own

actions: should I take my child to the Gap? In this case, should I be eating at

McDonald's?

The age-old philosophical question all over again—do the means justify the ends?

My verdict is this: the pictures are not so offensive to cause parents to be so

uppity. The picture, as one can see, is not quite a disembodied child. At best,

the child will inquire why Ronald looks so unusually sinister. Likewise, at

best, the parent can begin to explain the much more gruesome reality to their

kids… on their own terms, not PETA's (who would likely present a wholly

terrorizing image of the truth). The image of McDonald's might forever have a

negative connotation in the child's mind. Such a connotation is not unfair. Most

children who are vegans/vegetarians stopped eating meat when their parents

explained the origins of hot dogs. Children (being less desensitized than we

hardened, callused adults), are likely more inclined to cease eating meat if

they know their favorite cartoon characters are being killed for food every day.

When it comes to ugly truths, the better alternative to silencing it is to make

the truth a whole lot prettier… or in this case, a whole lot more humane.

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