People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals or ,PETA for short, have come out with a tweet that claims milk is a symbol of “White Supremacy.” PETA tweeted that many white supremacists drink milk because white people are least likely to be lactose intolerant. Even though many people of other races drink milk. PETA backs this up with the claim that because the dairy industry inflicts extreme violence on their cow, this makes it the drink of choice for white supremacists. Of course, there is no concrete evidence behind this claim. They continued by stating their belief that the relationship between humans and cows are split between three categories. The categories are man’s control of cows’ bodies, man’s control of their mind, and might doesn’t make right. According to the animal rights activist group, cows have no choice against what humans decide to do to them.

PETA states that whatever the relationship a cow has with a human, they will be subject to harsh treatments. They say that cows live in filthy enclosures without adequate care. While in the enclosure, they have their horns burned or gouged, their tails cut off, and their ear pierced. This is all before the milking process. When they are milked, PETA claims that the cows are forced to milk ten times more than how they would naturally. They don’t follow up with what is the natural amount of milk cows should produce. Again these claims are stated with no concrete evidence backing them up. They have even linked the movies “Get out” and “Inglorious Bastards” of promoting white supremacy when the characters sip milk, even though both films satirized racism and fascism. The links are very weak and would take considerable mental gymnastics even to consider a message of white supremacy in the films.

If they were to claim that humans are the only ones that drink milk produced by other animals and that we never outgrow milk, then they would have a point to stand on. They’ve even written, “Before you pour a glass of the “white stuff,” please remember that it isn’t the “right stuff.” This could’ve been an excellent way to start a discussion around milk. However, they went with the inflammatory and sensational route of claiming drinking milk supports white supremacy. Claims like these aren’t anything new for PETA to do. For a long time, they’ve pulled stunts like these attacking companies and people with outlandish claims. They’ve even attacked a beloved environmentalist and conservationist, Steve Irwin. Just like the tweet about Steve Irwin, PETA has received considerable backlash. Many called PETA out for lack of concrete evidence to back up their claim, but this is common with their outlandish claims. In fact, it could be argued that PETA might be intentionally making these claims for a reaction. An organization would usually back off and apologize after a PR issue. Still, it seems that PETA doubles down on it. After all these stunts PETA has pulled, dozens of more people will respond to this tweet, calling out the animal rights organization. Once this all settles down, its a matter of time until PETA tweets something outlandish again. Let’s just hope that people do not give them any attention this time.