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10 04 24 Pro-Animal Future's Natalie Fulton discusses Denver Ordinance 308 and 309
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A pair of measures appearing on Denver voters' ballots, this election seek to put an end to the sale of fur within the city and also ban the only slaughterhouse located in Denver proper. Proponents of these measures say that this is about protecting animals and taking a stand against the cruel treatment of their creatures. On the KOA Common Spirit Health hotline now from the group pushing for these ordinances, it's pro-animal futures, Natalie Fulton. Natalie, thank you so much for your time this morning. Thanks for having me. I really appreciate it. And I'm excited to talk about our measures. Yeah, lots to get to in these two measures. Let's start with Ordinance 309, to ban the construction maintenance, the use of slaughterhouses in Denver. Why do you feel like this one is important? And what was the overall push to have this in Denver proper? Sure, so we live in the United States, which is supposedly the land of the free, but 10 billion animals are confined and slaughtered here every single year. Their freedom is taken from them. They're separated from their friends and family. When we're kids, we're taught that some animals matter morally. Cats, dogs, guinea pigs. We protect them and welcome them into our families. But we were taught that other animals, pigs, chickens, cows, and sheep are here for us. And we can use them however we want. In reality, the scientific evidence has confirmed that the animals we eat and use for fur are just as emotionally complex as the animals we love at home. We treat them differently based on culture and tradition, and we think that it's time to update our sense of morality and stop treating animals as objects. As far as 309, it would close down the largest industrial land slaughterhouse in the entire country. Most Americans are deeply uncomfortable with the way farmed animals are treated in industrial slaughterhouses and factory farms. Superior farms, the slaughterhouse, is the space of factory farming in Denver. We started in Denver because we're from here. We have a lot of local activists. And this particular slaughterhouse has been violating animal cruelty laws as well as polluting the city for quite some time. And we think that if businesses are not going to follow the proper laws and continue to violate them, then we should shake about banning them. So, Natalie, when you talk about superior farms here, why are we pushing for a blanket ban and not just a push to close superior farms when they have reports of these environmental impacts and from the EPA and the Clean of Water Act? Shouldn't it be more of a push to try to get them closed if they're the culprits of all this? Yes, so that's the only slaughterhouse that would be affected right now. So it is a push to get them closed and then also prevent new slaughterhouses from being built because slaughterhouses around the country are notorious polluters and this would be better for the city. Natalie, just philosophically, do you think there's any such way for these operations to operate that are humane and ethical? Or do you think that all animal cruelty is all equal or all the same? In other words, do you think that there is a humane way of doing what slaughterhouses do? Sure, so I'm not going to say that meat doesn't taste good. I was raised eating animals. But the first time I ever went to a slaughterhouse was a pig slaughterhouse. It was up in Michigan and I watched as workers beat the pigs off of trucks and put them into gas shambers and the pigs screamed as they were killed in gas shambers. And it was that moment I realized that I didn't think that humans could be trusted to kill just many animals in a humane way. Some people disagree with that and if you're someone who hears that and thinks, "Oh, we could just kill the animals better," or if you're someone who thinks we should move away from it, the cool thing about these measures is that it's the step in the right direction for both of us. Speaking of doing things better, this is something else has been brought up about this that a lot of out-of-state influences and money are funding this. Is that the case? And if it is, does that matter? Because I'm just wondering if we have an out-state influence is determining what we do here. Some people have an issue with that, even if they may agree on the issue that you're trying to advocate. It's kind of ironic that they keep saying that we're getting out-of-state money because the opposition is, first of all, outspending us four to one and they're funded by giant factory farm lobbying groups. We do have some out-of-state donors, people who care about animals and the environment, but a lot of the money comes from here in Denver from people who care about the city. So it's not as if it's all out-of-state. And yeah, I think it's weird to say or try to to lie about us like that. Natalie, on both of these ordinances, ordinance 308, prohibiting the manufacturer distribution, display, sale, trade of certain animal fur products in Denver city limits, what would you say to those who are concerned about the economic impacts of these two measures if they do pass? Sure, so as far as fur, I think that what happens to animals in the fur industry is absolutely horrific wild animals like mink, rabbits, foxes, spend their entire life trapped in cages barely larger than their bodies. They're killed in brutal ways like anal electrocution and getting gas to death. 71% of Americans oppose the use of fur and it's banned in over 25 countries. I don't think the economic impact of fur would be that bad, but even if it is, I think that there are some things that happen to animals that we look past just the economic impact. If there was a dog fighting ring, we wouldn't say, "Oh, we should keep dog fighting," because it makes money. We say that's unacceptable, unacceptable, animal abuse, and we should evolve past treating animals that way. As far as 309, the economic impact, it could be worse, but it could also be good because a lot of businesses don't want to open near the slaughterhouse. The businesses that are near there don't even want to turn on their A fee because the stench is so bad that it drives customers away. Globeville has poverty levels, almost double the average in Denver. It hasn't seen the economic growth that other places in the city have. There's a lot of industry there, but partially because of the slaughterhouse. Animal agriculture receives billions of dollars in subsidies every single year, so they claim they're this economic powerhouse, but they're taking money from taxpayers all the time. Even if you don't want to give them your money, you have to for your taxes. I don't think they would be doing that if they were really truly profitable. Does it give you pause at all about the potential job loss with any of this at all? Of course, we included a provision in our legislation that would require the city of Denver to prioritize affected employees in their employment assistance program, where confidence they'll find better jobs than working in a slaughterhouse. Waterhouses have really high turnover, and they'll have over a year to find a new job. We also have former employees that have offered jobs to anyone who works there because they know how bad it is. And former employees describe racial and religious discrimination and rampant animal cruelty. Flutterhouse workers have high rates of PTSD and depression, so we're confident that they'll be in a better place than working in a slaughterhouse. Ordinances 308 and 309 will be before Denver voters coming up in November from the group pushing for these ordinances, pro animal futures. It's Natalie Fulton. Natalie, thank you so much for your time this morning. Thank you. Appreciate it. And coming up at 719 this morning, we'll have the opposite side of the argument as well with the president and CEO of the National Western Stock Show, Paul Andrews. Immerse yourself in a world of over a billion vibrant colors with Vizio's Quantum QLED TVs. No matter where you're sitting, everyone gets the perfect view thanks to wide viewing angle. Enjoy truly immersive gameplay with 120 FPS at 1080p. You can even stream your favorite songs with the iHeartRadio app, ready to go on every Vizio Quantum TV. 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