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Carrie Fisher Supported a Cause Close to Lisa Vanderpump's Heart Before Her Death
The late actress fought for the wellbeing of dogs everywhere.
Carrie Fisher didn't just absolutely adore her dog Gary; she also fought for the rights and wellbeing of dogs all over the world. One of the last causes Carrie championed before her death on Tuesday, December 27 was the end of the Yulin Dog Meat Festival.
The late actress joined a group protesting the annual event held in China's Guangxi province where thousands of dogs are killed for their meat outside of London's Chinese Embassy in June, according to Quartz. The group handed over a petition featuring 11 million names in support of banning the festival.
The U.K.'s Daily Express reported that Carrie spoke out against the Yulin Dog Meat Festival at the time of the protest. “There is so much animal suffering in the world, and much of it you feel helpless to end, but stopping the Yulin dog meat festival and ending all that suffering is easy,” she said. "All the Chinese authorities need to do is declare it shut down, and the killing stops. These poor dogs need us to fight for them. Every single one of them is as precious as my dear Gary, every one of them is someone's best friend.”
Carrie's death has inspired fans to call for the Yulin Dog Meat Festival to be shut down in her honor, according to the Daily Express. "We were so honoured and thrilled to have her join us that day. She was a huge star, and she had a million other places she could have been, but she chose to spend her time with us raising awareness about the horror of China's dog meat trade. The generosity of that choice was felt by all of us. She loved animals, especially dogs, and abhorred cruelty, and we are honoured to have been able to call Carrie Fisher a friend," Humane Society International's Wendy Higgins told the Daily Express. "It would be such a fitting tribute for her legacy as an animal lover for the brutal Yulin dog meat festival to finally end. I hope we can realise that dream for her."
The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills' Lisa Vanderpump has brought attention to the Yulin Dog Meat Festival stateside, organizing a march through Los Angeles, lending her support to a bill "condemning the Dog Meat Festival in Yulin, China, and urging China to end the dog meat trade," and establishing the Vanderpump Dog Foundation to fight for the wellbeing of pups around the world. Lisa retweeted posts recognizing Carrie's work for the cause.
She also paid tribute to Carrie's mother Debbie Reynolds, who passed away one day after her death on Wednesday, December 28.
See more of the RHOBH restaurateur's effort to end Yulin, below.
