Seems like 2012 is already the year of repeats; debates long-considered settled are rearing their contentious heads once again. From birth control making headlines, to the prevalence of fur at fashion week, its seems like it's the Revenge of the Past coming back to haunt us.
And so it is with animal testing, which for many of us who love both animals and makeup, is another issue that's come full circle. Turns out all that the time spent in the late '80s and '90s signing petitions was just a stay of execution for the nefarious practice of testing "beauty" products on defenseless animals (like the bunnies above; rabbits are used for testing because they are such docile creatures).
While I always hear people disparaging the group, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is once again on the front lines, making sure that we all know this is happening. (I would argue that PETA and Greenpeace have done more for animals in the past 20 years than all the other animal-advocacy groups put together, but that's fodder for another post.) But like any old story with a modern twist, this one involves China.
Turns out that currently, the Chinese government requires animal testing for beauty products sold in China, and PETA reports that while Mary Kay has been trying to work with the government to come up with new testing solutions for cosmetics that don't involve animals, Estee Lauder and Avon have gone along with the government requirements without complaint. Since the companies are all currently doing animal testing, none of these companies' products can bear the "cruelty free" designation (indicated by the leaping bunny logo), and have been removed — after long standing — from PETA's "Don't Test on Animals" list to the "Do Test" list.
Again, well, hell. I like Estee Lauder, and had started to order this set they have out, the Beautiful Skin To Go collection, but I think I'll pass.
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