PETA pushes for tribute to honor cows killed at South St. Paul's stockyards

By KEVIN GILES, Star Tribune

Last update: May 5, 2008 - 11:46 PM

THE LATEST: An animal rights group wants a memorial to slaughtered cows erected at the site of South St. Paul's stockyards.

In a Monday letter to Greg Miller, president of the company that is developing 27 acres of land vacated by Central Livestock last month, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals urges that he "recognize this site's historical significance and honor the millions of cows auctioned off for slaughter."

Ronald Eustice, executive director of the Minnesota Beef Council, said that a more appropriate tribute would honor workers in the stockyards and slaughterhouses during the industry's 122-year era.

"If there is to be a monument, it should commemorate the contributions of the immigrants that found employment at the stockyards and helped to provide a market for the livestock produced throughout the Northwest," he said.

IN ITS HEYDAY: South St. Paul became a melting pot of Germans, Croatians, Scandinavians, Poles, Greeks, Serbians, Romanians, Italians, Austrians, Hungarians, Russians and Irish. Two meatpacking giants, Swift and Armour, once employed 8,000 workers between them.

In its letter to Miller at Interstate Partners, an Eagan firm, PETA said a memorial "would provide an opportunity for visitors to reflect upon the many animals who suffered there."

Central Livestock's final auction in South St. Paul took place April 11. Interstate Partners is clearing the land to build a business park. Miller wasn't available to comment.

"Millions of cows were bought and sold at South St. Paul stockyards with no more regard for their feelings than if they were made of tin," said PETA President Ingrid E. Newkirk in a news release. The letter to Miller didn't mention sheep, hogs and goats, millions of which were auctioned in the stockyards.

PETA'S PROPOSALS: PETA said it's suggesting two designs for a memorial. One features the silhouette of a cow made of bolts meant to symbolize a killing method at slaughterhouses. The other shows a silhouette of a cow's head against a bloody background.

South St. Paul's mayor, Beth Baumann, said she had no comment. "PETA has a long tradition of pushing the boundaries for rational thinking," Eustice said.

Kevin Giles • 651-298-1554