VICTIMS OF FASHION: 'CROCODILES' CRASH LONDON FASHION WEEK

Nearly Naked Models Reveal the Painful Truth About the Exotic-Skins Industry

London – A trio of nearly naked models – dressed in little more than lingerie and crocodile masks – crashed the first day of London Fashion Week, brandishing signs proclaiming, "Cruelty to Crocodiles Unmasked" and "Animals Die for Exotic Skins". The action follows a recent PETA exposé of crocodile farms in Vietnam – including two that have supplied skins to a tannery owned by Louis Vuitton's parent company, LVMH – which revealed that animals are confined to tiny pits and sometimes hacked apart while they're still alive and thrashing.

Photos are available here, here, here, here and here.

"For every crocodile-skin bag or belt, animals were beaten and were likely still conscious as their skin was torn off", says PETA Director Elisa Allen. "With so many beautiful, luxurious vegan fabrics available, it's easier than ever to get that killer look without killing animals."

PETA – whose motto reads, in part, that "animals are not ours to wear" – has exposed cruelty on reptile farms on three continents, revealing in each case that intelligent, sensitive animals are forced to live in squalid conditions before being killed in violent and painful ways.

For more information, please visit PETA.org.uk.