“Bruiser’s Bill”: The Fight Against Animal Testing in the Cosmetic Industry

Right now, as I type this post, millions of animals are cramped inside cold, dark cages in laboratories across the nation. Many of them cry out in pain after a long day of torture and abuse, while some sit quietly in fear, awaiting the same fate as their neighbors when the sun rises. None of them will ever understand why they were placed in such an unfortunate position, but all of them will wonder if they will ever see freedom. As an avid animal lover and proud dog owner, I find it extremely hard to understand how or why scientists could use animals (that most of us would call family) as test subjects for a new cosmetic item. Many of these scientists and laboratories use unethical and inhumane treatments/procedures on the animals that can eventually lead to their death. According to the Humane Society, the most common animal procedures include:

• Forced chemical exposure in toxicity testing, which can include oral force-feeding, forced inhalation, skin or injection into the abdomen, muscle, etc.
• Exposure to drugs, chemicals or infectious disease at levels that cause illness, pain and distress, or death
• Genetic manipulation, e.g., addition or “knocking out” of one or more genes
• Ear-notching and tail-clipping for identification
• Short periods of physical restraint for observation or examination
• Prolonged periods of physical restraint
• Food and water deprivation
• Surgical procedures followed by recovery
• Infliction of wounds, burns and other injuries to study healing
• Infliction of pain to study its physiology and treatment
• Behavioral experiments designed to cause distress, e.g., electric shock or forced swimming
• Other manipulations to create “animal models” of human diseases ranging from cancer to stroke to depression
• Killing by carbon dioxide asphyxiation, neck-breaking, decapitation, or other means

(http://www.hsi.org/campaigns/end_animal_testing/qa/about.html)

I have not always felt so strongly against the use of cosmetic testing on animals. In fact, I wasn’t truly aware of the inhumane experimentation until a few years ago when I watched a silly, little movie called Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde. Although this may seem comical, Legally Blonde 2 was the main reason why I became so protective against animals and their rights. In the movie, Harvard Law graduate, Elle Woods, travels to Washington D.C. to pass a bill (Bruiser’s Bill) to put an end to animal testing after she finds out that her dog’s mother is used for testing at a cosmetic company that is represented by her law firm. I didn’t think that the animal testing in the cosmetic industry was a huge issue at first, but after I watched this movie, I became more aware of the truth and lies behind animal testing.

Fortunately, I am not the only person against animal testing in the cosmetic industry. In a survey that spanned from 2001 to 2013, researchers asked 1,000 US adults every year if they found animal testing morally acceptable or wrong. According to the survey, there was a 23% rise compared to what people thought in 2001. The survey data also showed that the majority of women and young adults under the age of thirty felt that animal testing was morally wrong. In the link listed below, Mirror News goes into more depth about the survey and how opposition to the practice is rising every year.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/technology-science/science/animal-testing-number-people-opposed-3153184

After all of this talk about opposing animal testing, you may be thinking if there are any benefits or positive to this issue. According to ProCon.org, “Some cosmetics and health care products must be tested on animals to ensure their safety. American women use an average of 12 personal care products per day, so product safety is of great importance. [41] The US Food and Drug Administration endorses the use of animal tests on cosmetics to “assure the safety of a product or ingredient.” [42] China requires that all cosmetics be tested on animals before they go on sale, so cosmetics companies must have their products tested on animals if they want distribution in China. [43] Mosquito repellent, which helps protect people from malaria and other dangerous illnesses, must undergo toxicological testing (which involves animal testing) in order to be sold in the United States and Europe. [44]”. From this statement, it can be deduced that animal testing for the use of cosmetics is imperative to ensure the safety of humans.

(http://animal-testing.procon.org/)