California recently passed a landmark bill that bans the sale of cosmetics that have been tested on animals. Animal testing in the cosmetics industry is rampant and almost always fatal — the tests include toxicity tests that expose animals like mice, rats, rabbits, and guinea pigs to painful skin and eye irritancy tests. They expose animals to deadly substances, sometimes by force-feeding or inhalation.

If California can pass a bill that bans the sale of animal tested cosmetics, so can New York. Join now in applauding California for passing this bill and demand New York do the same. A bill which would ban the sale of animal tested cosmetics in the state of New York was introduced at the end of 2017, so the momentum is on our side.

These tests on animals include force-feeding for weeks or months to look for signs of illness, cancer, or birth defects. Other tests include the “lethal dose” test, in which animals are forced to swallow large amounts of test chemical to determine the dose that causes death. No pain relief is provided to the animals in the studies, and most have agonizing deaths by asphyxiation, neck-breaking, or even decapitation.

These tests are often an unnecessary evil. Different species respond to the same chemicals in very different ways, meaning consumer safety cannot even be guaranteed. Not only that, but non-animal testing is often much cheaper than its counterpart, and results are often produced much more quickly.

Companies have the option of using products that are known to be safe for humans, but even if they need a test, there are dozens of non-animal tests that are already approved for use. These test are more relevant to humans, and are often cheaper — there are so many better alternatives that there is absolutely no reason animal tests are still in use today.

Demand New York follow California’s lead and ban animal tested cosmetics — very literally, lives are dependent on it.