3 Arrested as Over 20 Protest Cambridge Fur Seller

Jesus christ! It's vintage fur. With the cuts, mass poverty, bankers bonusses, imperialist resource wars breaking out left right and centre, could you find nothing better to do than protest the sale of second hand fur by a small retailer? If it was first-hand fur, that would be a different matter, but this is ridiculous. It's mental shit like this that pushed me totally away from the animal rights movement, and alienates the average person.

The problem is that Vintage perpetuates the fur industry as fur becomes more acceptable and fashionable. The idea that it is acceptable to abuse animals for the trivial pursuit of fashion. Some new fur is even 'laundered' via Vintage fur shops and sold as vintage.

It is not a matter of an old product that is no longer produced. Instead its about perpetuating a fashion trend that begins in Vintage retailers and then leads to the sale of new items of fur. As the Vintage items become 'acceptable and fashionable' the sale of new fur rises. Today's new fur is tomorrows Vintage and the circle continues. Many Vintage retailers up and down the UK recognise this and refuse to sell fur. All other Vintage shops in Cambridge do not sell fur items.

We are not asking for the fur to be destroyed, many positive uses can be put to it:

-Donations to the homeless as done by animal rights groups (as this does not perpetuate the upmarket fashion trend of using fur)

-Donations to animal shelters to keep animals warm (after all it was their kin the fur was taken from)

-Used in anti-fur stunts (helping repair some of the damage done by the 'acceptable' image Vintage gives the fur trade).

All we ask is it is not paraded around as a middle class fashion statement as this leads directly to the sale of new fur items.

Many ‘ordinary’ people agree with this. I would say opinion is at worst 50/50 against vintage fur with ‘ordinary’ non-activist members of the public and I personally think the percentage is a lot higher in our favour.

I can only hope you are one of the police trolls Indymedia recently exposed because such comments following the arrest of activists is far from acceptable. Animal rights activists are also very active in the anti-cuts, human rights, anti-fash and student fees movements.

to all involved. (A) sab I'm sure your tireless work against the system will bear fruit but please just let others fighting against the same system have thei day. Cheers.

I’m not AR but I’m against Vintage fur. Smash the state, smash the fur industry! One fight as they say!

the stall until they dont sell fur anymore, im glad it’s the last in cambridge. I like the stall but I dont like fur.

It does not matter where the fur is new or old, whether a day or 60 years. If they deal in fur they are a target. One of the ways the vile fur industry is trying to come back is through vintage, making false claims that because it's vintage it's therefore acceptable. Anti-Fur protestors do not protest against the industry and sale of fur not because it's new (or vintage), we protest against it because it is from animals that have had miserable horrific lives, squashed into a cage, hit, beaten, thrown around, stamped on, electrocuted, gassed, skinned and dismembered alive and torn apart limb from limb. We protest against the industry and the sale of fur because it is cruel, it is barbaric and it is unacceptable and unjustifiable. Plus, those who sell vintage fur are still making money out of animal exploitation and are involved with it and are also promoting it. Fur is murder, whether new or vintage. If they are involved with it they are a target!

As promised on the day, here's a couple of extra pictures I shot during the demo on Saturday.

In solidarity - selling fur is wrong, and it looks better on their backs not our's.

Suffering is not stylish!

Thanks for taking those photos and for your support and solidarity.