'Stunt': Peta slams President Joe Biden for turkey pardon ahead of Thanksgiving

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) came to Washington D.C.'s streets to slam President Joe Biden for his Turkey pardon ahead of Thanksgiving.

PETA's "Hell on Wheels" turkey lorry, which has toured 30 states since October, features recordings and messaging aimed at raising awareness. The vehicle, designed to replicate a turkey transport vehicle with images of confined birds, was stationed outside the Willard Hotel where the pardoned turkeys stayed before the ceremony. The lorry later positioned itself near the White House.

"It's a life-sized Turkey transportation truck, and it's covered with images of real sickly turkeys. And if people listen very closely, they will hear a subliminal message to go vegan every 10 seconds. And that's because we want people to listen closely and watch closely, because every turkey is an individual," Amanda Brody, assistant manager in PETA's international grassroots campaigns department, told Fox News Digital.

"No one needs to eat meat, dairy or eggs to be healthy, and everyone can help stop this needless suffering by simply going vegan today or enjoying a vegan roast at their Thanksgiving dinner this Thursday."

PETA's President Ingrid Newkirk recently wrote to President Biden, requesting the "lame duck president" to end what she termed the "wretched" pardoning custom.

Newkirk argued the tradition is "a humiliating meat-industry stunt that uses the White House as its public relations backdrop."

"Turkeys are devoted parents who purr to their chicks, and whose skin changes colour to express their emotions, yet in the meat industry, they're treated as unfeeling objects, crammed into filthy sheds, and slaughtered, often while they're still conscious," Newkirk said Monday.

"PETA's 'Hell on Wheels' truck is sending a strong signal that it's beneath the Oval Office to shill for the meat industry and appealing to the public to please give birds a break by choosing vegan this Thanksgiving and beyond," Newkirk added.

The origins of this presidential custom remain unclear. Some trace it to President Abraham Lincoln's turkey "clemency" in 1863, whilst others attribute it to President Harry S Truman. According to NPR, President George HW Bush officially established the tradition in 1989.