Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Fur is cruel and so over.. UK must stop buying it from Finland, China & US
Oscar winner calls on PM Boris not to shelve import ban
pure vanity. Animals are not ours to torture and use.” Our phone interview is briefly interrupted when my rescue cat Domino starts yowling for attention and tearing around the room.
Kim laughs and says she understands as she has adopted many stray animals over the years.
These include her dogs Ellie, saved from a Chinese lab, and terrier Hank, who she says was in a terrible state.
RESPECT
Kim credits her mum for teaching her to respect animals – something she has passed down to her 26-yearold daughter Ireland, from her marriage to actor Alec Baldwin, 64. The couple divorced in 2002.
Kim’s first marriage, to make-up artist Ron Snyder, 83, ended in 1989.
Four years ago, model Ireland followed in her mum’s footsteps by posing naked for a PETA campaign saying: “If you wouldn’t wear your own dog, you shouldn’t wear fur at all.” In 2018, Kim was one of the many people affected by wildfires in California.
Her home was wrecked by the terrifying blaze, which forced thousands of people to flee the affluent beachside city of Malibu.
Kim said: “I thank God my animals weren’t there as I would probably be in jail today as I’d have tried to get back in the house – and so would my partner [hair stylist Mitch Stone]…
“The real tragedy is that hundreds of thousands of animals were burned to death.
“We must do something to stop this [climate crisis]. Without animals, we don’t have a planet.”
Vegan Kim said she has been against “killing anything” since she was a little girl. She added that she believes moving towards a plant-based diet is the best way to protect the planet. She has also called on celebrities such as reality TV stars the Kardashians to use their influence to fight for worthy causes, saying “collectively, we could move mountains”.
Kim said: “There are so many entertainers with so much influence that they could get some of these horrible trades completely obliterated.
“I don’t care who gets the job done – Joe [Biden], Leonardo [Dicaprio] or the Kardashians… use your fame. Use your voice.
“There are so many little girls out there listening. There are so many influencers that could change the world.”
Kim said she is “ashamed” around 275 mink farms are still in operation in the US, and believes the only way to stop the trade is for the “import business to dry up”. The star also talked about her long admiration for Britain. “I love the UK and have so many connections,” Kim said. “I love the Beatles… they are my favourite group.
“I have so many memories from being a young girl looking towards the UK. I loved all the fashion, I love Twiggy and everything that comes out of London. It is a dream spot in so many people’s lives.”
She also praised the Queen for only using faux fur in new outfits.
Kim is the latest celebrity to support our fight to tackle the fur trade.
Since the Mirror launched the Fur Free Britain campaign with Humane Society International/uk in 2020, we have been backed by a number of stars such as Dame Judi Dench, Ricky Gervais, Gary Lineker, Brian May, Fearne Cotton, Joanna
Lumley and Simon Pegg. The
Mirror has revealed horrific cases of fur farms abroad.
Our investigation in Ostrobothnia in Finland last year found tiny cages full of helpless, sick foxes.
Since banning fur farming in 2000, the UK has imported fur worth more than £850million.
Humane Society International/uk executive director Claire Bass said: “It’s crunch time for this government and Boris Johnson to keep promises made to the British public that post-brexit we would advance laws to help stop animals suffering abroad.
“If the Animals Abroad Bill is not announced in the Queen’s Speech, it will be a hugely disappointing betrayal.”
So many influencers could help to change the world KIM ON WANTING MORE CELEBS TO SPEAK UP