PETA back at Iowa State Fair

PETA received a call late Friday afternoon from Iowa State Fair official Rollie McCubbin inviting us to return for the fair’s duration and show uncensored undercover footage—showing unlawful animal cruelty and profane language by farm workers—taken at Iowa farms. PETA will re-open the booth on Saturday at noon, in case you’d like to cover fairgoer reaction and speak with PETA rep Matt Bruce on-site. His contact info is on the release below from earlier today. Thank you. For Immediate Release:

August 10, 2012

Contact:

Matt Bruce 801-839-8487; MattB@peta.org

Shakira Croce 212-260-2304; ShakiraC@peta.org

PETA BOOTH BOOTED FROM STATE FAIR FOR PROFANITY OF SLAUGHTER WORKERS IN GRAPHIC VIDEO

Animal Charity Demands $1,050 Refund From Fair Organizers as Multimedia Display Is Disbanded

Des Moines — PETA's interactive booth has been thrown out of the Iowa State Fair after a video—which initially had been approved—sparked complaints over profane language used by meat-trade workers who abused animals on factory farms. PETA has demanded fair officials return its $1,050 fee for the booth—which drew throngs of visitors on opening day. (See photos below.)

The scene that led to the booth's dismissal spotlights a worker on a turkey farm who unsuccessfully attempts to break the neck of a struggling bird. He exclaims, "Sometimes they're fucking hard [to kill]." In the wake of Iowa's controversial new law to ban undercover investigations inside factory farms, the booth also contained video footage from PETA's investigation of an Iowa pig farm, which documents supervisors and workers beating pigs with metal rods and jabbing clothespins into the animals' eyes—evidence that led to convictions for the abuse and neglect of animals. The video, hosted by Paul McCartney, is viewablehere.

Photos from PETA's booth are included below. For more information, please visit PETA.org.