New PETA Exposé Reveals Lady Gaga, Others Lied to About How Their Feather Gowns Were Made

Sydney— A new PETA exposé reveals workers forcibly plucking ostrich feathers out of live birds, slitting their throats and bragging about supplying top fashion houses and Lady Gaga. The singer wore ostrich feathers throughout her Mayhem Ball tour and on the main stage at the opening ceremony of the Olympics, but was told by Dior that the gown was created using old feathers that the birds shed naturally—a far cry from what happens at the South African factory farm who admitted to sourcing the look. 

“Behind every feathered frock is a terrified bird whose plumage was ripped off their body against their will,” says PETA Executive Agent Mimi Bekhechi. “Like so many others, Lady Gaga was misled about the feathers she wore by an industry built on cruelty and deception. PETA urges celebrities and consumers alike to steer clear of feathers and anything that belongs on an animal, and choose innovative, vegan materials that harm no one.” 

PETA Asia’s undercover investigation in South Africa shows workers aggressively grabbing and shoving hoods on ostriches’ heads, restraining them in a metal cradle, and tearing fistfuls of feathers from their wings and tails as the birds kick and thrash. The investigator saw blood on freshly removed feathers and documented two ostriches being choked by the neck before workers plucked them. At a slaughterhouse, workers electrically stunned ostriches, suspended them upside down, and slit their throats without the investigator seeing anyone check whether the birds were unconscious first.

Other major fashion brands have been implicated in the investigation as well, including Gucci, Hermes, Louis Vuitton, Prada and Chanel—whose ostrich feather looks were worn by Dua Lipa, Selena Gomez, Nicole Kidman, and Teyana Taylor this year. 

Numerous major brands and events have banned feathers from their shows, including Victoria’s Secret and Ibiza Fashion Festival. Stella McCartney, famously feather-free, has called on designers to sign PETA’s feather-free pledge, vowing never to use feathers in their collections.

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to wear or abuse in any other way”—points out that when it comes to the ability to feel pain, hunger, and fear, an ostrich is a dog is a boy. For more information, please visit PETA.org.au and follow PETA on Facebook and Instagram.

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