Pamela Anderson’s risque advertisement promoting vegetarianism has proven just a tad too sexy–even for Montreal, a city long celebrated for its sultry side.
The former Baywatch star was denied a permit to publicly launch her latest animal-rights campaign after city officials got a peek at the partial nudity in the ad poster.
In that PETA ad, Anderson’s bikini-clad body is marked up like a butcher’s diagram, with parts of her flesh stencilled with labels like “breast,” “round,” and “rump.”
The caption reads: “All animals have the same parts. Have a heart–Go vegetarian.”
Anderson, who is in town to perform at the Just for Laughs comedy festival, had hoped to launch the campaign at a public square in front of Montreal’s city hall.
A city official called the advertisement sexist and not something Montreal could endorse.
“We, as public officials representing a municipal government, cannot endorse this image of Ms. Anderson,” wrote Josee Rochefort, an official in charge of issuing permits with the city’s television and film office.
“It is not so much controversial as it goes against all principles public organizations are fighting for in the everlasting battle of equality between men and women.”
At a news conference today, Anderson said the city was silly for denying the permit, and she also took a shot at the Calgary Stampede, describing the event as cruel.
In an earlier statement, she called the city’s decision a farce.
“In a city that is known for its exotic dancing and for being progressive and edgy, how sad that a woman would be banned from using her own body in a political protest,” Anderson said.
“In some parts of the world, women are forced to cover their whole bodies with burqas–is that next? I didn’t think that Canada would be so puritanical.”
