The Los Angeles City Council unanimously approved a motion on Sept. 18 to ban the sale and manufacture of fur products within city limits, making it the largest city in the world to ban fur.
The products, including clothing, handbags, shoes, hats, keychains, jewelry and earmuffs, are prohibited from being made of fur either in part or whole. However, used fur products are excluded.
West Hollywood was the first U.S. city to ban the sale of fur clothing in 2013, except for legally caught wild animals under California law. Berkeley passed a similar ban in 2017.
Allegations of Inhumane Treatment
“More than fifty million animals including foxes, chinchilla, minks, raccoon, dogs and rabbits are killed for their fur every year," stated the Los Angeles City Council motion.The motion also states these animals live in cramped conditions and are often killed in painful ways to preserve the quality of the pelt, such as suffocation, electrocution, and gassing. Some are even skinned while conscious.
“You can’t sleep at night once you’ve seen it,” said actress Maggie Q in front of Los Angeles City Hall before the vote took place. “It’s one of the most horrific things I’ve ever witnessed in my life.”
Some popular brands such as Armani, Gucci, Michael Kor, and Burberry are also moving away from selling or using fur.
Alternatives Might Harm the Environment More
The Los Angeles City Council urged people to consider alternatives, so that animals won’t be killed for their fur. However, organizations against the motion, such as Fur Information Council of America, said alternatives harm the environment even more.“Real furs last generations, far outlasting their synthetic counterparts. Plastics take hundreds of years to decompose and pollutes landfills, groundwater and contributes to the pollution of our oceans,” states the organization’s website.
“‘Trendy’ mass produced fake fur is often discarded at a much higher rate than real fur, requiring base chemicals used to make fibers, intensive energy consumption and industrial pollutants for multiple garments to match the lifespan of one real fur which can last upwards of 30 years.”
Demand for Fur Might Increase
According to Euromonitor International, a market-research firm, the demand for fur in the U.S. is projected to increase by 4.5%; from $336.9 billion in 2014, to $352 billion in 2018 in fur apparel and clothing accessories.Even though more California cities are imposing these bans, consumers can still buy fur products from online stores or outside of these city limits, and many people are expected to keep buying them.
“It’s about, ‘Does a very small minority have the right to determine for the majority what we choose to wear, to eat, to buy? And, the campaigns against leather, the campaigns against wool, the campaigns against meat are already well underway,” said Keith Kaplan, spokesman for the Fur Information Council of America.
The Ban Won’t Be Effective Immediately
The Los Angeles City Attorney still needs to draft an ordinance for the fur ban, and then city officials will need to give final approval. Then with the mayor’s signature, the ban would take effect two years later.The motion was presented by Bob Blumenfield, Paul Koretz, and Mitch O’Farrell.
New York is the only entire state in the U.S. where the sale of fur is illegal.
Fox contributed to this report
