Your Local Shelter is Not Behind These Disturbing Ads
Last week, graphic TV ads started airing from the Humane Society Legislative Fund, an affiliate of the Humane Society of the United States, regarding a bill in the Oregon legislature that would have outlawed the ivory trade in Oregon. In the ad you see graphic images of bloodied tusks and dead animals. The ad attempted to link the images with a candidate for office.
Many people who’ve seen these commercials believed they were from us, the Oregon Humane Society. We had nothing to do with them. Although we have similar names, the Humane Society of the United States, based in Washington, D.C., has no relation to the Oregon Humane Society or other humane societies across the country.
We do not participate in partisan politics and are in fact prohibited from advocating for or against a particular candidate. We are disappointed that HSUS abbreviates their name to just “humane society.” This only adds to the confusion between a national lobbying organization and hardworking local shelters across Oregon.
This election year is already stacking up to be extremely negative. Coupling graphic images of dead animals with the usual mudslinging is particularly disturbing. But these ads aren’t coming from your local animal shelter. I hope when you think of the Oregon Humane Society, you will think of us as the place to find your next best friend, of summer camps for kids, and as a shelter where everyone is treated with respect—we are not a publisher of salacious and disturbing political ads.
Sincerely,
Sharon Harmon
Executive Director, Oregon Humane Society
