After last year\’s terrorist attacks, my first reaction was shock and horror and my second reaction was wondering if People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals would be stupid enough to try to put an animal rights spin on the tragedy.

And, of course, they did. The following is a press release that was posted to PETA\’s web site sometime between the evening of Sept. 11 and the morning of Sept. 12. Somebody at PETA had the good sense to yank this off the site sometime later on Sept. 12, but not before I\’d already posted a copy to this site\’s discussion group.

That this was PETA\’s initial reaction to the 9/11 attacks speaks volumes about that organization\’s priorities — note that at a time when the phone system in and out of New York was brought to its knees by the heavy volume of traffic, PETA was urging people to call repeatedly if necessary to urge mayor Rudolph Giuliani to make animal rescue a high priority.

New York City\’s Animals Desperately Need Your Voice

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Obviously our hearts go out to every human being affected by the tragedy at the World Trade Center. This terrible tragedy has serious repercussions for animals, too. Due to the tremendous loss of human lives, there will undoubtedly be many animals left orphaned. Other animals are trapped in buildings that have been evacuated and to which people have learned they are unable to return. PETA\’s headquarters is receiving calls from desperate New York City residents whose companion animals are trapped inside now vacated apartments, some so close to the World Trade Center that the animals inside can only be highly traumatized by the explosions, the sirens, the noise, the shaking ground, the smoke, and now the unexplained absence of their families. We know of at least one 13-floor building, 120 Greenwich Street, practically across the street from the World Trade Center, where more than 20 dogs and an undetermined number of other companion animals are locked inside apartments without food or water or comfort.

These animals need your immediate help.

Mayor Giuliani has a poor record when it comes to animals. In 1998 he refused to allow desperate New Yorkers whose apartment building\’s scaffolding collapsed, the opportunity to tend to or rescue their beloved animals for more than five days, leaving animals to become dehydrated and starving.

Please urge Mayor Giuliani to set up a task force to locate and rescue animals in need. To many of this disaster\’s victims and their families, these beloved animals are members of the family and would be a great source of comfort.

PETA and other animal protection groups are willing to send trained rescuers into the buildings to take the animals out, if given the chance. We will sign waives of liability in the event of any injury or death. United Animal Nations (UAN.org), can offer assistance with mobilizing volunteers and rescuing and caring for abandoned animals.

Mayor Giuliani\’s address is:

Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani
City Hall
New York, NY 10007
Tel.: 212-788-9600
Fax: 212-788-7476
E-Mail: http://www.nyc.gov/html/mail/html/mayor.html

If you have a difficult time getting through to Mayor Giuliani due to phone line trouble, please don\’t give up; keep trying.