The Fur-Free Friday
A historical perspective by Cres Vellucci, one of the founders of this event.

"Fur-Free Friday" was created in 1986 by Trans Species Unlimited (TSU), based in Pennsylvania with West Coast offices in California, as a way to focus on department stores' decision to sell fur.

Prior to Fur-Free Friday, there were sporadic fur protests in the early and mid-1980s.  However, activists with TSU felt there needed to be some kind of coordinated action to increase the intensity of protest against the cruelties of the fur industry.  TSU also wanted activity that was more dramatic than passing out flyers.

In creating Fur-Free Friday, the intent was to provide grassroots activists all over the U.S. the opportunity to participate in a coordinated direct action against department stores.  The focus was also placed on acts of nonviolent civil disobedience at these stores, similar to the lunch counter sit-ins and other civil rights actions.

In 1985, in a prelude to this organized event, two groups of activists -- one in the New York Macy's and another in the Sacramento Macy's - did the first-ever coordinated, non-violent civil disobedience activity protesting fur in the U.S.  The arrests totaled several dozen. The following year, the dedicated anti-fur activists hit stores on what is widely known as the busiest shopping day of the year, the day after Thanksgiving. 

Since then the day after Thanksgiving has become known in the movement as Fur-Free Friday.

At its height of popularity among activists, Fur-Free Friday involves dozens of grassroots groups in more than 30 states, all engaged in non-violent protests that result in hundreds of arrests.  Meanwhile, as Fur-Free Friday grew, fur sales slumped.  In the 1980s, fur sales topped more than $2 billion a year and, likely due to protests such as Fur-Free Friday, have dwindled to about half that currently.

By the early and mid-1990s, Fur-Free Friday had been recognized in the animal movement as being one of the most widely attended U.S. protests against animal suffering.  Nationally recognized organizations such as In Defense of Animals (IDA) have been significant promoters of the movement-wide event by providing anti-fur posters and informational literature.

In 1997, Fur-Free Friday saw a range of activities, including non-violent civil disobedience.  More than 100 dedicated activists were arrested while making their statements of protest against fur.  Fur-Free Friday is one of the few nationally recognized days in the animal movement with "ownership" belonging to grassroots activists determined to halt the cruel fur industry and retailers of its products.

Cres Vellucci can be contacted via email at: civillib@cwnet.com, or website www.FurFreeFriday.com.

The Fur Facts: Trapping

• 10 million animals are trapped for their fur each year. The United States, Canada, and Russia account for most of the world's wild fur production.

• Approximately two non-target animals are caught for every one furbearing animal.  These non-target animals include squirrels, opossums, dogs, cats, and even endangered species and birds of prey that are attracted to baited sets.

• The steel jaw leghold trap is the most common trap used by the fur industry, followed by the wire snare, and the Conibear body gripping trap which crushes the animal.

• 88 countries and 5 states have banned the leghold trap because of its inherent cruelty and because it is non-selective and traps whatever animal steps into it.

• Congress has failed to pass anti leghold trap legislation, despite public opinion surveys showing that 74% of Americans oppose this device. These polls are verified by the fact that when given a chance, voters in CO, MA, and AZ voted to ban trapping.

• Animals are left in these traps from anywhere from 1 to 3 days, and sometimes longer. Many times these animals will die from starvation, hypothermia, dehydration, or predation by another animal. Otherwise the trapper will shoot them, stomp them, or club them.

• Many animals will chew off their own limbs in a desperate attempt at escape.  This is especially common in raccoons. A 1980 study found that as many as 1 out of every 4 raccoons caught in a leghold trap would chew his foot off to escape.

• Some companies manufacture padded leghold traps for cosmetic purposes.  These padded traps still have to slam shut with enough force to restrain a fighting mad wild animal. Animals caught in padded traps are still exposed to the elements and predators until the trapper returns to kill them. Studies show that padded traps cause injury to 97% of the coyotes that they ensnare.

• Many animals knock out their teeth as they bite at the jaws of the traps. In Sweden a study was conducted where 645 foxes were caught in leghold traps.  514 of the foxes were considered seriously injured, and 200 of them had knocked out teeth as they bit at the trap.

• There are 150,000 trappers in the United States.

• Wisconsin, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Michigan are the leading trapping states.

The Fur Facts: Farming

The Fur Facts: U.S. Trade Economy