Imagine a world with no hunting, no fishing, no livestock.<\/p>\n
That might sound like Bizarro World to most Americans. But animal rights advocates are pushing to make it a reality in Oregon.<\/p>\n
Initiative Petition 28<\/a> would remove many exemptions from current Oregon animal cruelty laws to protect more animals from abuse, neglect and killing. Exemptions would remain for self-defense and veterinary practices, but otherwise the measure would criminalize any activity that injures or kills animals.<\/p>\n Most of the same protections that currently apply to the family dog or cat would extend to salmon, deer, cattle and lab animals. The PEACE Act (People for the Elimination of Animal Cruelty Exemptions) would therefore bring a seismic shift to multiple Oregon industries, from farming and fishing to scientific research and restaurants.<\/p>\n It\u2019s no sure thing that the initiative will make it onto the November ballot. Organizers have gathered more than 92,000 signatures since summer 2024, but they need to hit the required 117,173 by July 2. With about 25,000 more to go, they are roughly 79% of the way there.<\/p>\n David Michelson, who is leading the initiative, said the campaign was trying to raise awareness about the needs of those other animals, not just pets.<\/p>\n \u201cRight now, I think it is normal for people to recognize that our companion animals have needs,\u201d Michelson said. \u201cI think most people would say, \u2018Yeah, dogs and cats, they\u2019re curious, they enjoy play, they enjoy companionship, they fear, they want comfort, they have these basic needs.\u2019 And I would say not just basic needs but psychological needs. I think most people would acknowledge that. But we don\u2019t tend to acknowledge that when it comes to other animals.\u201d<\/p>\n Michelson emphasized that there are ways people could meet their own needs that don\u2019t come at the expense of animals\u2019 needs. He pointed to non-lethal wildlife management, organs-on-chips for animal research and alternatives to animal agriculture as a few examples.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it\u2019s really important that we are conscious that our choice right now to kill animals is a choice, that it is a strategy that we\u2019re using to meet some very important needs,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd I really do want to acknowledge those needs and validate how important those are, whether those needs be for sustenance, for culture, for recreation, for whatever it might be, for economic stability, all those things. But that there are alternative choices we could make.\u201d<\/p>\n To address the initiative\u2019s potential impact on industries, organizers included the creation of a transition fund that could be used for income replacement, job retraining and food assistance.<\/p>\n Plenty of industry groups are loudly opposing the initiative.<\/p>\n A graphic<\/a> from the Oregon Hunters Association says that \u201cevery Oregonian\u201d would be affected by the measure. AGPROfessionals, an advocacy company based in Greeley, Colorado, calls the Oregon initiative<\/a> \u201ca direct threat to agriculture and animal ownership.<\/p>\n