Duckworth, Booker Introduce Legislation to Protect Kangaroos by Ending the Sale of Commercial Products Made with Kangaroo Skin in the U.S.
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] – Today, U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Cory Booker (D-NJ) introduced legislation to protect the estimated two million wild kangaroos who are needlessly killed every year for the use of their leather in commercial products. The killing of kangaroos for their leather, also known as “k-leather,” is currently the largest commercial slaughter of mammals worldwide driven by demand for their skin in certain models of soccer cleats. To help reverse this inhumane trend and safeguard the kangaroo species from commercial exploitation, the Senators’ Kangaroo Protection Act would ban the sale and manufacturing of products made from kangaroo skin, as well as the sale of kangaroo skin itself. Additionally, this legislation would empower the Secretary of Commerce, in consultation with other agencies, to issue civil and criminal penalties of fines up to $10,000 and other regulations.
“The mass killing of millions of kangaroos to make commercial products is needless and inhumane—and we must do better,” said Senator Duckworth. “I’m proud to introduce this bill with Senator Booker that would help prevent the deadly exploitation of kangaroos and promote the use of more humane alternatives to k-leather.”
“We must take action to conserve the kangaroo species and end their inhumane exploitation,” said Senator Booker. “This legislation will ensure that no one in the United States can distribute kangaroo products for commercial benefits.”
The commercial slaughter of kangaroos isn’t just widespread—it’s unnecessarily cruel. It uses similar killing methods and is ten times larger than the infamously brutal Canadian seal hunt, which prompted the United States to ban the import of seal pelts in 1972. Despite having similar import bans for other animals, the U.S. is currently the second largest commercial market for k-leather products in the world. The Senators’ proposed legislation would help change that.
Copy of the bill text is available on Senator Duckworth’s website.
A similar version of the bill was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives in 2021, which had 17 co-signers and strong bipartisan support.
“Commercial shooters slay perhaps 1.5 million kangaroos a year in their native habitats for parts, mainly used in soccer cleats, sold across the world,” said Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of Animal Wellness Action and the Center for a Humane Economy. “Senator Duckworth’s bill puts a stop to that commerce in the United States, and it will prevent the mass orphaning of joeys whose mothers are killed in merciless and indiscriminate nighttime shoots.”
This legislation is supported by over 150 organizations, including: Alaqua Animal Refuge & Wildlife Rehabilitation Center (Freeport, FL), Albuquerque Vegan (NM), Animal & Earth Advocates (Seattle, WA), Animal Advocates of South Central Pennsylvania, Animal Alliance Network, Animal Behavior and Healing (Portland, ME), Animal Care Society (Mathews, VA), Animal Protection Affiliates (NV), Animal Protection League of New Jersey, Animal Protection New Mexico, Animal Rights Foundation of Florida, Animal Rights Initiative, Animal Rights Maine, Animal Save Movement, Animal Welfare Society (Kennebunk, ME), Animal Wellness Action, Animal Wellness Foundation, Animals’ Angels, Arizona Humane Society, Arrow Fund (Louisville, KY), Ballydídean Farm Sanctuary (Clinton, WA), Berkshire Voters for Animals (MA), Bleating Hearts Sanctuary (Golden, CO), Boulder Bear Coalition (CO), Bucky’s Bull Rescue (Cedar Grove, WI), Cedar Cove Conservation & Education Center (Louisburg, KS), Charleston Carriage Horse Advocates (SC), Christian Animal Rights Association, Citizens for Alternatives to Animal Research and Experimentation (CAARE), Colorado Voters for Animals, Connecticut Votes for Animals, DC Voters for Animals, Difference Makers Media (Wilmette, IL), Direct Action Everywhere (Berkeley, CA), EarthAction, Endangered Habitats League (West Hollywood, CA), Endangered Species Coalition, Environmental Protection Information Center (CA), Fair Start Movement, Federation of Humane Organizations of West Virginia, Forever Home Beagle Rescue (Pittsburgh, PA), Four Paws USA (Boston, MA), Friends of the Merry Meeting Bay (Richmond, ME), Friends of the Wisconsin Wolf and Wildlife, Global Coalition of Farm Sanctuaries, Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries, Good Karma Pet Rescue (Pompano Beach, FL), Green Mountain Animal Defenders (Burlington, VT), Heart of Alabama (Killen, AL), Hope Haven Farm Sanctuary (Sewickley, PA), Hotchkiss Humane Society (CT), Howling for Wolves (Hopkins, MN), Humane Action Pennsylvania, Humane Action Pittsburgh (PA), Humane Animal Rescue of Pittsburgh (PA), Humane Long Island (NY), Humane Society of Central Arizona, Humane Society of Huron Valley (MI), Humane Voters of Washington, In Defense of Animals, Indraloka Animal Sanctuary (Dalton, PA), Indraloka Sanctuary Children’s Programs (Dalton, PA), Jefferson County Humane Society (OH), Jewish Vegan Life, Kindred Spirits Rescue Ranch (Darlington, PA), Klamath Forest Alliance (CA), LA Animal Save (Los Angeles, CA), Lancaster Farm Sanctuary (PA), League of Humane Voters – Georgia, League of Humane Voters - New Jersey, Los Angeles Alliance for Animals (CA), Maine Animal Coalition, Maine Friends of Animals, Marley’s Mutts (Tehachapi, CA), Mayor’s Alliance for NYC’s Animals (NY), Michelson Center for Public Policy, Misfits Coven Animal Haven (Pittsburgh, PA), New Hampshire Animal Rights League, North Country Animal League (Morrisville, VT), Northeast Equine Rescue (West Newbury, ME), NYC Plover Project (New York City, NY), NYCLASS (New York City, NY), Ocean Conservation Research, Oceanic Preservation Society, OceansWide (Newcastle, ME), Off the Plate Farm Animal Sanctuary (Montgomery, VT), Out to Pasture Animal Sanctuary (Estacada, OR), Off the Table Farm Sanctuary (Westfield, WI), Palm Springs Animal Shelter (CA), Pasado’s Safe Haven (Sultan, WA), Patchwork Pastures (Wantage, NJ), Pawsitive Beginnings, Inc. (Key Largo, FL), Peace Ridge Sanctuary (Brooks, ME), Peaceful Prairie Sanctuary (Deer Trail, CO), People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), Pigsburgh Squealers (Tarentum, PA), Pittie Posse Rescue (ME), Pittsburgh Vegan Society (PA), Plant-Based Treaty, Plant Peace Daily (Glorieta, NM), Pollination Project (Marin County, CA), Project Animal Freedom (Eureka, MO), Protect Our Wildlife Vermont, Revolution Philadelphia (PA), Rise for Animals, Safe Haven Wildlife Sanctuary (Imlay, NV), Sanctuary Education Advisory Specialists (East Hartford, CT), Santa Fe Vegan (NM), Santa Paula Animal Rescue Center (CA), Save Our Sky Blue Waters (Duluth, MN), Social Compassion in Legislation (Laguna Beach, CA), SPCA International, SPCA of Hancock County (ME), Supporting and Promoting Animal Ethics for the Animal Kingdom (SPEAK) (Tucson, AZ), Switch4Good (Irvine, CA), The Center for a Humane Economy, The Urban Wildlands Group (Los Angeles, CA), The Wild Animal Sanctuary (Keenesburg, CO), Their Turn, Trailsafe Nevada, Turtle Island Restoration Network (CA/TX), Unitarian Universalist Animal Ministry (Boulder, CO), Vegan Pittsburgh (PA), Veganville Animal Sanctuary (Seaside, OR), VENDX (Edgewater, FL), Vermont Wildlife Patrol, Victorian Kangaroo Alliance, Voice for Animals (York, ME), Voices of Wildlife in New Hampshire, Voters for Animal Rights (Brooklyn, NY), West Virginia Voters for Animal Welfare, Western Massachusetts Animal Rights Advocates, Western Wildlife Outreach (WA), WildAid (San Francisco, CA), World Vegan Vision (Paterson, NJ) and Wyoming Wildlife Advocates.
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