PETA Is Protesting Outside H&M Stores – Here’s Why
Shoppers visiting H&M’s flagship store in central Stockholm this week were met with a stark reminder of the cruelty behind the wool industry, as PETA supporters staged a dramatic protest calling on the fashion giant to stop selling wool.
Wearing clothing splattered with fake blood and cradling a realistic prop “dead lamb”, animal defenders gathered outside the retailer’s Drottninggatan store holding signs reading, “Sheep Beaten, Kicked and Killed for Wool. Don’t Buy It” and “Sheep Suffer. H&M: Ditch Wool!”
H&M: Drop Wool!
The demonstration marked the launch of a new international campaign by PETA entities around the world urging H&M to ban wool after a recent PETA Asia investigation exposed shocking abuse at a wool operation linked to H&M Group’s supply chain.
The investigation focused on a farm certified by NATIVA, a wool standard promoted as “high welfare” and “responsibly sourced”. Yet investigators documented workers kicking sheep in the head and body, striking them in the face with shearing equipment, beating them with a piece of wood, and dragging lambs by their front legs. Sheep were sheared so roughly that some were left with bloody, gaping wounds.
One worker was filmed dropping his knee onto a ram’s neck, causing the animal’s head to hit the floor.
An International Campaign
The action follows a similar demonstration outside an H&M store in London in May, when PETA supporters confronted the company with another “dead lamb” over its continued sale of wool despite mounting evidence of cruelty throughout the industry.
Investigations conducted by PETA entities over the years have repeatedly revealed abuse at wool operations around the world. To date, PETA entities have released 17 exposés spanning more than 150 wool industry facilities in seven countries across four continents. The findings show that violence against sheep is not limited to a few “bad actors” but is widespread even on farms marketed as ethical, responsible, or sustainable.
Sheep Are Someone, Not Something
Sheep are sensitive, social individuals who can recognise faces, form strong bonds with one another, and experience fear and pain just as dogs, cats, and humans do. Yet in the wool industry, they are routinely subjected to rough handling, stressful procedures, and ultimately slaughter when their wool production declines.
We’re urging H&M to remove wool from its shelves and replace it with the many innovative plant wools already available. Join us in taking action today!
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