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St. Cloud State University
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Leather is dead
By Kathy Kropp
Published:
Monday, September 30, 2002
Cathy Kropp -- Guest Column
As the temperature begins to rapidly drop, I witness something that prompts me to dust off the old soapbox and step up onto it for a good lecture.
I find it disgusting that we are surrounded by death everyday and few of us seem to pay it any mind. I am talking about the death of innocent animals and the use of their skin for jackets, gloves, boots and more.
Leather is horrible not only because it promotes acceptance of the mistreatment of animals but because the tanning process that is used harms the environment and threatens our health.
Over 100 million animals are killed and skinned each year in the United States alone to produce leather products. People try to comfort themselves with delusions of happy, frolicking animals that live full, productive lives and die peacefully of old age. The truth is exactly the opposite. Many animals are raised in horrible conditions on factory farms and suffer from overcrowding, insufficient food and water, and physical abuse, among other things.
But this shouldn't be. We should not treat our fellow beings with such cruel disregard. For skeptics who say that it doesn't affect us personally, I have an argument for you.
The leather industry tries to tell us that the chemicals they use are safe and that leather is biodegradable. This is laughingly false. Not only does the tanning process itself cause the fibers in the leather to become more stable and consequently NOT biodegradable, but the chemicals used are horribly toxic. In fact, one of the chemicals that is widely used (chromium) has been determined as hazardous by the EPA.
A study done by the New York State Department of Health showed that over half of those surveyed who had developed testicular cancer worked in tanning factories. A separate study done by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention showed an increased incidence of leukemia in people who resided near these factories that was five times the national average. It seems that many areas near tanning factories have increased levels of cancer-causing chemicals in their groundwater.
Is this a coincidence? Not likely. One can find these facts and more on various Web sites including one run by the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.
What I find most disheartening about the entire matter is that there are perfectly viable and affordable alternatives. Synthetic materials that mimic the quality of leather are not difficult to find and many major chains have responded favorably to the increased demand for animal-friendly merchandise. Payless Shoes, Kmart, J.C. Penney, and designers such as Nike and Liz Claiborne are just a small handful of the stores and designers that carry these non-leather alternatives. These alternatives are often much more affordable, with prices up to 75 percent cheaper than real leather.
So please, before you slip on those calfskin gloves or leather jacket, give the animals that died to produce it a second thought. Fashion does not need to be cruel.
