Long Boi statue sparks PETA row with University of York

Animal rights charity PETA - People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals - say the recently unveiled statue of Long Boi the duck at the University of York has prompted them to write to the university's chancellor. 

They have sent a letter to chancellor Dr Heather Melville urging her to 'honour the duck’s legacy by removing the flesh of his fellow birds from all campus menus', asking for duck as well as chicken and turkey meat to be taken off the menu in a show of solidarity.

The group has also offered to install a vegan starter kit stand next to the new statue to help students pay a meaningful tribute to 'his löngthiness' by refusing to cut short the lives of birds or other animals.

Last month, a funeral, held by DJ Greg James, was broadcast live on BBC Radio 1.

Radio 1 DJ Greg James at the University of York, left, and the statue of Long Boi (Image: Supplied) A spokesman for the University of York has said they do not intend to comment on the issue at this time.

“Just like Long Boi, every bird is an individual with a unique personality who experiences love, joy, pain, and fear and doesn’t want to be hacked to bits for their flesh any more than we would,” said PETA vice president of programmes Elisa Allen.

“PETA is urging the University of York to honour Long Boi’s memory by sparing a thought for all of his feathered brethren and leaving birds off the menu.

"In the meat industry, ducks, geese, chickens, turkeys, and other birds are confined by the tens of thousands to severely crowded, filthy sheds and bred to grow such unnaturally large upper bodies that their legs often become crippled under the weight.

"At slaughterhouses, many of the birds are inadequately stunned before their throats are cut – so they’re often still conscious when they’re dumped into defeathering tanks full of scalding-hot water.

"In addition to the immense cruelty, raising and killing birds and other animals for their flesh is catastrophic for the environment and creates breeding grounds for zoonotic diseases like avian flu.

"Each person who goes vegan spares hundreds of animals – including birds – a violent death every year, dramatically shrinks their food-related carbon footprint, and slashes their risk of suffering from heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and strokes."

Elisa Allen (Image: Actor headshot photographer) Long Boi, an unusually tall Indian runner/mallard duck cross who became an Internet meme in 2021, lived on the grounds of York University's Derwent College.

He went missing and while a body was never found, he was presumed dead with students leading a fundraiser for a statue in his honour.

Long Boi was a campus institution (Image: Supplied)