Aretha Franklin’s memorial service is set to take place Friday, August 31, and it looks like PETA is already after the Queen’s furs. It’s been over a week since Aretha passed, and PETA had the nerve to send a letter to Aretha’s niece asking if the estate would donate all of Aretha’s furs to their fur donation program.
According to the Grio, the program recycles the furs and gives them to people in need, such as those in refugee camps and in homeless shelters.
This is what Peta sent:
Dear Sabrina,
We’re so sorry for the loss of your aunt. The world has lost an amazing talent, and we’re grateful that her music will live on.
Aretha will always be remembered for all that she did to help empower African-American people, especially women, in her lifetime. Might we now call on her estate to help end the cruel era of wearing animal fur by donating her fur coats to PETA, where they’ll go on to offer warmth and comfort to those who need it the most? In the past, we’ve given donated fur coats—some coming from other wonderful women including Anjelica Huston, Mariah Carey, and Mary Tyler Moore—to homeless shelters in the U.S. (including in Detroit) and to displaced refugees in Afghanistan, Mongolia, and Syria.
Designers, brands, and stores are dropping fur as quickly as consumers are ditching it. As faux fur and other cruelty-free, vegan materials take over, real animal fur can be put to good use, and this generous donation would secure Aretha forever as an “Angel” for animals.
Thank you for your time and consideration. Please let us know if there’s anything that we can do to help you and your family through this difficult time.
Best regards,
Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman, PETA
The company also sent a press release saying, “By donating Aretha Franklin’s fur coats to PETA, her family could expand her legacy of social justice to animals. While we can’t bring back the animals who suffered and died for them, these coats can help others by providing some much-needed warmth to orphaned animals and humans in desperate need.”
Now I’m all here for this #Roommates, but was it too soon?
