August 20, 2025 • 12 mins
In her time at PETA, Reiman has led successful campaigns to pressure some of the biggest names in business to adopt animal-friendly policies. Under her guidance, more than 450 top fashion brands—from Calvin Klein to H&M—have stopped selling fur, angora wool, down, or wild-animal skins; Ringling Bros. circus stopped forcing animals to perform under the big top and SeaWorld ended its orca-breeding program; and all of the top 10 advertising agencies in the U.S. pledged never to use great apes in their ads, among numerous other landmark victories for animals.
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/arroe-collins-unplugged-totally-uncut--994165/support.
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/arroe-collins-unplugged-totally-uncut--994165/support.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
How are you good?
Speaker 2 (00:02):
How are you fantastic? Excited to share a conversation with you,
because what I love about Peta is that you've got
such an amazing past, but yet the future is wide
open and there's a lot to be done.
Speaker 1 (00:14):
That's absolutely true.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
How do you keep your focus?
Speaker 1 (00:19):
Well?
Speaker 3 (00:20):
Thank you for having me on today, and I just
wanted to say that I'm honored to be Pete's new president.
Speaker 1 (00:25):
I am going.
Speaker 3 (00:26):
To continue with our ever groundbreaking work, but I will
bring my experience in youth marketing and social media to
the forefront to create generations of kind consumers and make
Peta as technologically advanced as we can be. I'm setting
my sights on replacing wool in the fashion industry with
(00:47):
non animal materials, getting birds out of cages, stopping humanewashing
of meat darien eggs, because I think people would go
vegan if they knew that these misleading labels we're completely untrue.
We're going to modernize science education with cutting edge alternatives
to dissection, and work to get all animals out of laboratories.
Speaker 2 (01:11):
It seems to be a very heavy job, but you
don't seem winded.
Speaker 1 (01:16):
I have endless energy for this.
Speaker 3 (01:18):
You know. I've been with PF for thirty three plus
years now and it's my life's work. I wake up
every day ready to do battle because we have a
war on animals, and every day we wake up and think,
how can we keep animals in the forefront of people's minds,
because unless if they're not thinking about this issue, they're
(01:40):
not changing. And we know that when people learn that
cows produce milk for the same reasons humans do to
nourish their young. But in the dairy industry, calves are
torn away from their mothers within a day of birth
so that humans can steal their milk.
Speaker 1 (01:56):
This causes them, you great distress.
Speaker 3 (01:58):
We know that if we can tell them these things,
if we can show them these things, then they will change.
Speaker 1 (02:03):
And this is why one of.
Speaker 3 (02:04):
My focuses, of course on social media is that it's
a window to the world of you know, what's happening
behind the scenes, and I think young people today really
want to see what's happening. And through our undercover investigations
we're able to actually run footage. We can also show
video footage of baby monkeys who are stolen from their
(02:25):
mothers and tortured, and laboratories we can show them the
images of hens who, while they may not be living
in cages, as Cage Free says, they're crammed into warehouses
with tens of thousands of other birds. So it's important
that we take every opportunity to show these images to
(02:47):
people online.
Speaker 2 (02:48):
You know, the person that has my attention right now,
and I just I don't know. Maybe it's because I
grew up on a farm in Montana, but it's these
armchaired chicken farmers who have chickens in the backyard and
they're selling eggs that mean bothers me so deeply.
Speaker 3 (03:03):
Yeah, you know, I grew up in Georgia, a meat
and potatoes person, so I understand. You know, I think
people want to believe that animals don't have to suffer
for their food, but it's not. It's just not possible.
There is just no such thing as human meat. I mean,
even the people who are raising him in the backyard,
those birds, once they stop producing enough eggs fast enough
(03:26):
to be profitable, they are shipped off to be slaughtered.
So you know, there's no easy way around it. You know,
it's so easy to be kind, and you know, we
make it easy for people with our vegan starter kits,
which you can get free online at pita dot org,
filled with recipes and easy ways that you can make
that transition. And there are so many wonderful just vegan
(03:50):
meats and taste alikes. There's faux fish, there's vegan chicken,
there's many wonderful vegan cheeses out there. In fact, we're
out passing out fifty thousand pieces of vegan cheese to
people in several states during this week because we know
that once you taste it, you're open to it. And
that's our job is to make people open to it,
so just try it.
Speaker 2 (04:11):
Well, we've got to get these grocery stores, though, to
create a vegan section. Don't just you know, spot it
throughout the store where we have to go on some
sort of treasure hunt, and they're not helping the consumer
at all.
Speaker 3 (04:22):
Well, you know, I would say that in one regard,
it's harder for those of us who are vegan, but
for those who aren't, in a sense it's helpful, you know.
And now in the cheese section at many grocery stores
you can find the vegan cheeses and that's really helpful
to those people because they aren't thinking oh, I'm going
to go to the vegan section because I'm vegan, you know,
so you can find the veggie burger crumble in the
(04:46):
ground beef section. And that's really helpful for people who
are kind of thinking about it but haven't made that
decision yet.
Speaker 2 (04:52):
I've made that transition to more plant based. My god,
I feel so much better. I mean, I wish I
would have known this, you know, long before, or even
decided to take that chance.
Speaker 3 (05:02):
Yeah. Well, I mean, eating meat contributes to some of
the biggest diseases in this country, heart disease, cancer, and stroke.
And if you're concerned about any of these things, high
blood pressure, diabetes, all of it, a vegan diet, especially
a low fat vegan diet, is the best thing that
you can do for your health long term.
Speaker 2 (05:22):
Please do not move. There's more with Tracy Raymond coming
up next. She's the president of PETA. We're back with
Tracy Raymond. I've been worried about you guys in the
way that with all these DOSEE cutbacks and stuff like that,
I keep sitting there trying to figure out if they're
going to come toward you guys either. But you guys
are more of a private outlet, are you not.
Speaker 3 (05:42):
I mean, we're you know, a nonprofit organization. We don't
take in any government or corporate funding. We're supported only
by private donation. So it really hasn't had an impact
on us in that regard at all. You know, I think,
you know, animals sort of like goes above and beyond
all all of these other issues. You know, every we
(06:02):
were a nation of animal lovers, you know, we all
want to do the best for animals, and I think
it's just a matter of people understanding what they can
do and how they can do it. And I think,
you know, there's so many ways. For instance, if you're
in college, or if you're in high school and they
ask you to dissect an animal. We now have the
kind frog, which is a synthetic alternative that we created
(06:26):
because my son, when he was in high school, was
faced with having to dissect and his teacher was so
obstinate that we decided to create something that would give
science teachers hands on experience that wouldn't have that formaldehyde
or the cruelty to animals. So there's you know, My
plan is to modernize, modernize, modernized, modernize in every way
(06:48):
that we can, whether it's animal experimentation, whether it's dissection,
whether it's the use of animals for clothing. You know,
with wool, we've done fifteen undercover investigations on four continents
to expose how sheep are beaten, punched, kicked, thrown, cut up.
It's not just a haircut and people are now starting
(07:11):
to learn that, and we're working with companies behind the
scenes to get them to be more creative and use
the alternatives that are already available. You know, people don't
go into a store and think I need a bull sweater.
They go in wanting something pretty, something comfortable, something warm,
and we can get that with.
Speaker 1 (07:28):
All the alternatives that are there.
Speaker 3 (07:30):
It's just a matter of like getting the companies to
start and they are starting to do that.
Speaker 2 (07:35):
When you talk about you going to four different continents,
please tell me that you went into South America and
this hippo issue down there, because that is really heavy
on my heart. Something has gotten out of control because well,
it was human ego that started it.
Speaker 3 (07:48):
Yeah, I'm not sure what the hippophost story is.
Speaker 1 (07:52):
What was that.
Speaker 2 (07:53):
Well, they're taking over the country and they were all
brought in by Escobar and then and all of a sudden.
You know, they call them the drug hippos and so,
and I see and I fear the same thing down
there in Florida with these bogus strictors. Well, my bull
constrictor's seven feet long. I don't need it anymore. I'm
going to take it to the everglades.
Speaker 3 (08:12):
Yeah, you know this is this is a real problem.
I mean, anytime animals are exploited, there there are consequences,
and you know, we have to look at each one
and try and figure out what the best way is
to handle handle them. But what we know is that
just mass killing and bringing in hunters or doing whatever
we think will give you an immediate result is not
(08:34):
the way to do it. But I think if we
start thinking about it at more of a core level,
like do we need to use animals? No, we don't,
not for anything at all. And what can I do?
You know, it only takes one person to change in
animal's life. That could be you, whoever's listening. So please
we urge people not to underestimate their power as an
(08:55):
individual to bring about change for animals. You can do
it every day when you sit down for a meal,
when you go out to buy things, when you entertain yourselves.
Don't go to a circus or any entertainment that involves animals.
There's so much that you can do as an individual
to change the world.
Speaker 2 (09:13):
Even planting a tree will change the world. And the
reason why I bring that up is closely February of
nineteen ninety seven, we planted seventeen hundred trees on this
land because Wow, I wanted the deer to come home.
Speaker 3 (09:24):
Yeah they have.
Speaker 1 (09:25):
Oh, how wonder.
Speaker 2 (09:26):
The hawks and we've got the owls and it's like
the whole community has shown back up and it's just
so fascinating to sit with them.
Speaker 1 (09:34):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (09:34):
I mean, we saw that during COVID, you know, when
the National Parks, when the animals all came out into
the open.
Speaker 1 (09:39):
It was so wonderful and it's interesting, you know.
Speaker 3 (09:42):
I Another one of the issues that I will be
focusing on is getting birds out of cages. And this
is in part because where I live in southern California,
we have wild parrots flying free every day with their
lifelong partners, just chatting.
Speaker 1 (09:56):
Away, living their life as they should.
Speaker 3 (09:58):
And one time I would running down the street and
just as some parrots flew by, I saw that someone
had put their caged parrot on the porch. Oh, and
I thought, how devastating it must be for that parrot
to see, you know, their friends flying by free, and
what they must feel like when they're robbed of like
(10:20):
companionship and of the freedom to do the most basic thing.
And so I'm really going to focus on, you know,
ending the caging of birds and the sale of birds.
And interestingly too, these birds who fly free in my
area are now actually endangered in Mexico because of the
pet trade. So it's just ironic, but I think more
(10:42):
people have to think about this. When you're thinking about
bringing an animal into your home, you can actually adopt birds.
There are lots of birds out there you can adopt
if there, if that's what you really feel passionate about.
But adopting dogs and cats from the shelter, adopting even
guinea pigs and other animals, rabbits, you can adopt them
all from shelters or rescue groups.
Speaker 2 (11:04):
Oh, I love where your heart is. Where can people
go to find out more about everything that you are doing?
Because I mean you're talking about social media, you're talking
about reaching way way out there. In fact, you're reaching
toward us.
Speaker 1 (11:15):
Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3 (11:16):
Well, you can go to peta dot org our website
to learn about any of our issues. You can join
our action team to learn about events in your area.
You can do all sorts of things like giving out
vegan starter kits to people. You can feed vegan food
to people who've never tried it before. You can talk
to store managers about offering more products that don't harm animals.
You can share content on social media. But we're on Twitter, Instagram, Instagram, TikTok,
(11:41):
all of the social media sites. Just search PETA and
you'll find us. And we'd love for everyone to join
us and be a part of this incredible movement which
is now more than ten million strong.
Speaker 2 (11:52):
I love it. You got to come back to the
show on the Future there PETA President Tracy. The door
is always going to be open for you.
Speaker 1 (11:58):
Thank you so much. I appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (12:00):
You'd be brilliant today.
Speaker 1 (12:01):
Okay, okay, thank you you too. Thank you
How are you good?
Speaker 2 (00:02):
How are you fantastic? Excited to share a conversation with you,
because what I love about Peta is that you've got
such an amazing past, but yet the future is wide
open and there's a lot to be done.
Speaker 1 (00:14):
That's absolutely true.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
How do you keep your focus?
Speaker 1 (00:19):
Well?
Speaker 3 (00:20):
Thank you for having me on today, and I just
wanted to say that I'm honored to be Pete's new president.
Speaker 1 (00:25):
I am going.
Speaker 3 (00:26):
To continue with our ever groundbreaking work, but I will
bring my experience in youth marketing and social media to
the forefront to create generations of kind consumers and make
Peta as technologically advanced as we can be. I'm setting
my sights on replacing wool in the fashion industry with
(00:47):
non animal materials, getting birds out of cages, stopping humanewashing
of meat darien eggs, because I think people would go
vegan if they knew that these misleading labels we're completely untrue.
We're going to modernize science education with cutting edge alternatives
to dissection, and work to get all animals out of laboratories.
Speaker 2 (01:11):
It seems to be a very heavy job, but you
don't seem winded.
Speaker 1 (01:16):
I have endless energy for this.
Speaker 3 (01:18):
You know. I've been with PF for thirty three plus
years now and it's my life's work. I wake up
every day ready to do battle because we have a
war on animals, and every day we wake up and think,
how can we keep animals in the forefront of people's minds,
because unless if they're not thinking about this issue, they're
(01:40):
not changing. And we know that when people learn that
cows produce milk for the same reasons humans do to
nourish their young. But in the dairy industry, calves are
torn away from their mothers within a day of birth
so that humans can steal their milk.
Speaker 1 (01:56):
This causes them, you great distress.
Speaker 3 (01:58):
We know that if we can tell them these things,
if we can show them these things, then they will change.
Speaker 1 (02:03):
And this is why one of.
Speaker 3 (02:04):
My focuses, of course on social media is that it's
a window to the world of you know, what's happening
behind the scenes, and I think young people today really
want to see what's happening. And through our undercover investigations
we're able to actually run footage. We can also show
video footage of baby monkeys who are stolen from their
(02:25):
mothers and tortured, and laboratories we can show them the
images of hens who, while they may not be living
in cages, as Cage Free says, they're crammed into warehouses
with tens of thousands of other birds. So it's important
that we take every opportunity to show these images to
(02:47):
people online.
Speaker 2 (02:48):
You know, the person that has my attention right now,
and I just I don't know. Maybe it's because I
grew up on a farm in Montana, but it's these
armchaired chicken farmers who have chickens in the backyard and
they're selling eggs that mean bothers me so deeply.
Speaker 3 (03:03):
Yeah, you know, I grew up in Georgia, a meat
and potatoes person, so I understand. You know, I think
people want to believe that animals don't have to suffer
for their food, but it's not. It's just not possible.
There is just no such thing as human meat. I mean,
even the people who are raising him in the backyard,
those birds, once they stop producing enough eggs fast enough
(03:26):
to be profitable, they are shipped off to be slaughtered.
So you know, there's no easy way around it. You know,
it's so easy to be kind, and you know, we
make it easy for people with our vegan starter kits,
which you can get free online at pita dot org,
filled with recipes and easy ways that you can make
that transition. And there are so many wonderful just vegan
(03:50):
meats and taste alikes. There's faux fish, there's vegan chicken,
there's many wonderful vegan cheeses out there. In fact, we're
out passing out fifty thousand pieces of vegan cheese to
people in several states during this week because we know
that once you taste it, you're open to it. And
that's our job is to make people open to it,
so just try it.
Speaker 2 (04:11):
Well, we've got to get these grocery stores, though, to
create a vegan section. Don't just you know, spot it
throughout the store where we have to go on some
sort of treasure hunt, and they're not helping the consumer
at all.
Speaker 3 (04:22):
Well, you know, I would say that in one regard,
it's harder for those of us who are vegan, but
for those who aren't, in a sense it's helpful, you know.
And now in the cheese section at many grocery stores
you can find the vegan cheeses and that's really helpful
to those people because they aren't thinking oh, I'm going
to go to the vegan section because I'm vegan, you know,
so you can find the veggie burger crumble in the
(04:46):
ground beef section. And that's really helpful for people who
are kind of thinking about it but haven't made that
decision yet.
Speaker 2 (04:52):
I've made that transition to more plant based. My god,
I feel so much better. I mean, I wish I
would have known this, you know, long before, or even
decided to take that chance.
Speaker 3 (05:02):
Yeah. Well, I mean, eating meat contributes to some of
the biggest diseases in this country, heart disease, cancer, and stroke.
And if you're concerned about any of these things, high
blood pressure, diabetes, all of it, a vegan diet, especially
a low fat vegan diet, is the best thing that
you can do for your health long term.
Speaker 2 (05:22):
Please do not move. There's more with Tracy Raymond coming
up next. She's the president of PETA. We're back with
Tracy Raymond. I've been worried about you guys in the
way that with all these DOSEE cutbacks and stuff like that,
I keep sitting there trying to figure out if they're
going to come toward you guys either. But you guys
are more of a private outlet, are you not.
Speaker 3 (05:42):
I mean, we're you know, a nonprofit organization. We don't
take in any government or corporate funding. We're supported only
by private donation. So it really hasn't had an impact
on us in that regard at all. You know, I think,
you know, animals sort of like goes above and beyond
all all of these other issues. You know, every we
(06:02):
were a nation of animal lovers, you know, we all
want to do the best for animals, and I think
it's just a matter of people understanding what they can
do and how they can do it. And I think,
you know, there's so many ways. For instance, if you're
in college, or if you're in high school and they
ask you to dissect an animal. We now have the
kind frog, which is a synthetic alternative that we created
(06:26):
because my son, when he was in high school, was
faced with having to dissect and his teacher was so
obstinate that we decided to create something that would give
science teachers hands on experience that wouldn't have that formaldehyde
or the cruelty to animals. So there's you know, My
plan is to modernize, modernize, modernized, modernize in every way
(06:48):
that we can, whether it's animal experimentation, whether it's dissection,
whether it's the use of animals for clothing. You know,
with wool, we've done fifteen undercover investigations on four continents
to expose how sheep are beaten, punched, kicked, thrown, cut up.
It's not just a haircut and people are now starting
(07:11):
to learn that, and we're working with companies behind the
scenes to get them to be more creative and use
the alternatives that are already available. You know, people don't
go into a store and think I need a bull sweater.
They go in wanting something pretty, something comfortable, something warm,
and we can get that with.
Speaker 1 (07:28):
All the alternatives that are there.
Speaker 3 (07:30):
It's just a matter of like getting the companies to
start and they are starting to do that.
Speaker 2 (07:35):
When you talk about you going to four different continents,
please tell me that you went into South America and
this hippo issue down there, because that is really heavy
on my heart. Something has gotten out of control because well,
it was human ego that started it.
Speaker 3 (07:48):
Yeah, I'm not sure what the hippophost story is.
Speaker 1 (07:52):
What was that.
Speaker 2 (07:53):
Well, they're taking over the country and they were all
brought in by Escobar and then and all of a sudden.
You know, they call them the drug hippos and so,
and I see and I fear the same thing down
there in Florida with these bogus strictors. Well, my bull
constrictor's seven feet long. I don't need it anymore. I'm
going to take it to the everglades.
Speaker 3 (08:12):
Yeah, you know this is this is a real problem.
I mean, anytime animals are exploited, there there are consequences,
and you know, we have to look at each one
and try and figure out what the best way is
to handle handle them. But what we know is that
just mass killing and bringing in hunters or doing whatever
we think will give you an immediate result is not
(08:34):
the way to do it. But I think if we
start thinking about it at more of a core level,
like do we need to use animals? No, we don't,
not for anything at all. And what can I do?
You know, it only takes one person to change in
animal's life. That could be you, whoever's listening. So please
we urge people not to underestimate their power as an
(08:55):
individual to bring about change for animals. You can do
it every day when you sit down for a meal,
when you go out to buy things, when you entertain yourselves.
Don't go to a circus or any entertainment that involves animals.
There's so much that you can do as an individual
to change the world.
Speaker 2 (09:13):
Even planting a tree will change the world. And the
reason why I bring that up is closely February of
nineteen ninety seven, we planted seventeen hundred trees on this
land because Wow, I wanted the deer to come home.
Speaker 3 (09:24):
Yeah they have.
Speaker 1 (09:25):
Oh, how wonder.
Speaker 2 (09:26):
The hawks and we've got the owls and it's like
the whole community has shown back up and it's just
so fascinating to sit with them.
Speaker 1 (09:34):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (09:34):
I mean, we saw that during COVID, you know, when
the National Parks, when the animals all came out into
the open.
Speaker 1 (09:39):
It was so wonderful and it's interesting, you know.
Speaker 3 (09:42):
I Another one of the issues that I will be
focusing on is getting birds out of cages. And this
is in part because where I live in southern California,
we have wild parrots flying free every day with their
lifelong partners, just chatting.
Speaker 1 (09:56):
Away, living their life as they should.
Speaker 3 (09:58):
And one time I would running down the street and
just as some parrots flew by, I saw that someone
had put their caged parrot on the porch. Oh, and
I thought, how devastating it must be for that parrot
to see, you know, their friends flying by free, and
what they must feel like when they're robbed of like
(10:20):
companionship and of the freedom to do the most basic thing.
And so I'm really going to focus on, you know,
ending the caging of birds and the sale of birds.
And interestingly too, these birds who fly free in my
area are now actually endangered in Mexico because of the
pet trade. So it's just ironic, but I think more
(10:42):
people have to think about this. When you're thinking about
bringing an animal into your home, you can actually adopt birds.
There are lots of birds out there you can adopt
if there, if that's what you really feel passionate about.
But adopting dogs and cats from the shelter, adopting even
guinea pigs and other animals, rabbits, you can adopt them
all from shelters or rescue groups.
Speaker 2 (11:04):
Oh, I love where your heart is. Where can people
go to find out more about everything that you are doing?
Because I mean you're talking about social media, you're talking
about reaching way way out there. In fact, you're reaching
toward us.
Speaker 1 (11:15):
Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3 (11:16):
Well, you can go to peta dot org our website
to learn about any of our issues. You can join
our action team to learn about events in your area.
You can do all sorts of things like giving out
vegan starter kits to people. You can feed vegan food
to people who've never tried it before. You can talk
to store managers about offering more products that don't harm animals.
You can share content on social media. But we're on Twitter, Instagram, Instagram, TikTok,
(11:41):
all of the social media sites. Just search PETA and
you'll find us. And we'd love for everyone to join
us and be a part of this incredible movement which
is now more than ten million strong.
Speaker 2 (11:52):
I love it. You got to come back to the
show on the Future there PETA President Tracy. The door
is always going to be open for you.
Speaker 1 (11:58):
Thank you so much. I appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (12:00):
You'd be brilliant today.
Speaker 1 (12:01):
Okay, okay, thank you you too. Thank you
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
My Favorite Murder with Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark
My Favorite Murder is a true crime comedy podcast hosted by Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark. Each week, Karen and Georgia share compelling true crimes and hometown stories from friends and listeners. Since MFM launched in January of 2016, Karen and Georgia have shared their lifelong interest in true crime and have covered stories of infamous serial killers like the Night Stalker, mysterious cold cases, captivating cults, incredible survivor stories and important events from history like the Tulsa race massacre of 1921. My Favorite Murder is part of the Exactly Right podcast network that provides a platform for bold, creative voices to bring to life provocative, entertaining and relatable stories for audiences everywhere. The Exactly Right roster of podcasts covers a variety of topics including historic true crime, comedic interviews and news, science, pop culture and more. Podcasts on the network include Buried Bones with Kate Winkler Dawson and Paul Holes, That's Messed Up: An SVU Podcast, This Podcast Will Kill You, Bananas and more.
The Joe Rogan Experience
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.