Fur likely illegal by 2020
By Sam Catanzaro
With warm temperatures year-round, rarely is wearing fur a necessity in Southern California. Still, fur fashion accessories remain a popular item of clothing for many here, but soon this may change.
On Tuesday, September 18, Los Angeles City Council passed a bill that instructs L.A. City Attorney Mike Feuer to draft legislation that would ban the manufacture and sale of fur products within the City of Los Angeles, starting in 2020.
Every year, more than fifty million animals including foxes, chinchilla, minks, raccoon, dogs and rabbits are killed for fur. According to the World Society for the Protection of Animals, eighty-five percent of these mammals are raised and slaughtered on factory fur farms and over the fur industry has often been linked with inhumane practices.
In response to these concerns around the ethics of the fur industry, other California cities such as San Francisco and West Hollywood have also banned the sale of fur. As the second largest city in the country and one of the centers of the fashion industry, the move by Los Angeles carries significant weight, something that animal rights organization People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) pointed out in a statement released Tuesday.
“PETA is popping the champagne corks today,” wrote the organization. “When Los Angeles speaks, the world listens, and it’s now the largest and most notable city to tell the world that fur is dead.”
The move by City Council does not ban the sale and manufacture of fur quite yet. The bill passed Tuesday directs the City Attorney Mike Feuer to formulate a law that would render illegal the sale of fur. Councilmembers expect Feuer’s office to complete the language in about a month. This would then be voted on again by the Council and signed into law by Mayor Eric Garcetti. The ban would go into effect two years after it is signed into law. According to Constance Farrell, Public Information Officer for the City of Santa Monica, the City of Santa Monica does not have any current plans of their own to ban fur.
