People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has been criticized after sharing a controversial National Boob Day post on Twitter, the style of which, the animal rights organization told Newsweek was necessary to capture attention.

As #NationalBoobDay trended on social media, the animal rights organization used the occasion to reiterate its objection to human consumption of cow's milk.

To drive the point home, PETA shared a cartoon image of a man lying flat on his back under a cow, as he drank milk straight from one of its teats.

Captioning the eye-catching graphic, the organization wrote: "Are you drinking from a cow's boobs this #NationalBoobDay?"

A follow-up tweet read: "Now that we have your attention: the dairy industry doesn't want you to watch this, but cows are literally dying for you to see it. #DitchDairy."

Video footage of cows in distressing situations was then shared by the organization, who further stated: "Reminder: Cows need to have babies in order to produce milk. Just like human mothers, the milk they make is for their babies."

However, PETA's efforts to shine a light on the reality of the meat and dairy industries led to wide derision for the way in which the message was shared.

"Is Peta a furry account now?" @DarrenRose__ tweeted in response. "I'm a vegan & I don't understand how tf this is supposed to get people on board."

"My daughter drinks cow boob milk every day. It's fine," wrote @DaveS_Sports. "Look, I think PETA's heart is in the right place, but their methods are just...weird. And ineffective."

"Weird picture, and weirder still is what exactly would be done with all the cows if we had no further use for them," wrote @MoonWyvrn69. "They can't survive in the wild, and I don't think farmers would keep them for no reason. So are you saying that instead of having cows for food, we wipe them out?"

Relating PETA to an unpopular family member, @noddyatthedisco commented: "PETA is that one relative nobody ever wants to call for reunions, no one ever asks over and no one ever invites for Christmas. Yet they show up anyway and show the kids the photos of the roadkill they spotted last year."

Suggesting that the offending farms in question be taken to task, rather than generalize the entire industry, @TheJoTurner said: "Well why don't you drop the name of the establishment that treats the cows like this so something can be done against THEM? There are plenty of farms that treat their animals better."

Countering the points made by PETA, @dadcalledmejake stated: "Cows, being mammals, lactate to feed their young. They also, like other mammals including humans, can continue to lactate long after their young have grown out of the need for milk, if continually stimulated to do so. No 'ripping away the young' required."

Meanwhile, @cptramenqueen quipped: "S***, how did PETA find a way to make me hate boobs?"

PETA's vice president, Joel Bartlett, told Newsweek that the style of messaging was necessary to capture attention and spread the organization's message to the masses.

"PETA's main social media strategy is to use evocative, emotional messaging, as we have mere seconds to stand out on the feed and grab people's attention," Bartlett said. "We're delighted to reach millions of new people who may never have considered, for example, that it's unnatural to impregnate cows forcibly and steal the milk meant for their calves, not for human adults.

"When we saw #NationalBoobDay trending, we seized the chance to remind people that cows' milk is for baby cows."

Update 8/3/21, 10:55 a.m. ET: This article was updated to add a statement from PETA vice president, Joel Bartlett.

Uncommon Knowledge

Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

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