'Look, I am trendy in fashion'
'I simply go for what is current -
Love fur-coats and fur-accessories'
'My mom has a fetish for
Fancy leather shoes and belts'
'My cousin is crazy
About leather purses and handbags'
'You look handsome and great in jacket,
Is this genuine leather stuff?'
'This suede leather shawl
My uncle gifted me on last birthday.'
These are a few snapshots
Of conversation I overheard
As a passerby among a group of
College going young boys and girls
In the recent past.
I wonder
What they were talking about.
Do they really know
Of the illegal industry and trade
Flourishing worldwide
And cruelty, torture and pain
Inflicted to innocent animals
For their skin, fur and vital parts?
Foxes, chinchillas, rabbits and seals
Being electrocuted, battered or smashed
Snakes being nailed and skinned alive
Crocodiles and alligators hammered to death
List is very long, naming just a few.
So skinning animals alive
Or beating them to death
How far is this justified
Just for a boot, bag or purse?
It's obvious, killing animals
For the sake of fashion
Is cruel, inhuman and heinous act
We remain ugly from the inside
In an endeavor to look fair from outside.
And how many of us are really aware
About the numerous life forms
Either extinct or dangerously close to
From the planet earth in recent past!
Let's awake before it's too late
And not wipe out the life,
Colour and diversity of nature.
Let's shed exotic skins from the wardrobe
And resolve for future no more leather or fur
For the sake of vanity or a fashion cause.
