‘Mutts’ Pushes for Prop 2
This week’s Mutts storyline takes a political tone as creator Patrick McDonnell campaigns in favor of California’s Proposition 2, which is aimed at curbing factory farm abuses. Mutts, found in 700+ newspapers in 20 countries, is read by four million Californians no doubt distracted more by presidential politics than the proposition.
Michael Markarian spoke with McDonnell at the Huffington Post about this unusual activism for the one page of the newspaper that usually eschews offending anyone.
“In Mutts I try to see the world through the eyes of animals,” he told the site. “This has made me more conscious of how tough many of them have it on this planet. In 2000 I was asked to join the Board of Directors of The Humane Society of the United States, and became even more aware and involved. I felt that my strip could address (hopefully, for the most part, in an entertaining way) some of these issues and help give the animals a voice.
“Prop 2 is just too important to not tackle. Even though the reform will be modest, it puts a stake into the ground that the way we treat farm animals matters…20 million animals will be directly impacted, suffering less, if this measure passes. It will also send a clear message to the factory farm conglomerates that, once people are made aware, they will not tolerate the way most animals raised for food are treated in this country.”