If You’re a GEICO Ad, You Exploit Animals. It’s What You Do.

By Daria Zeoli, Guest Contributor

This article is part of the Ad Nauseam series– a look at advertising through the ethical vegan lens.

I have been meaning to address the latest GEICO commercial to grind my gears. You might recall that this isn’t the first time I’ve taken notice of a GEICO ad; check out GEICO: Making Fun of Veganism for Money for more.

This latest TV spot stars a “free range” chicken traveling the country to the sounds of Roy Orbison:

The chicken sends photos from her journey to some humans sitting on a porch somewhere, as a voiceover explains, “If you’re a free range chicken you roam free. It’s what you do.”

Pardon me, but are they fucking kidding?

Listen, I understand that the majority doesn’t really give much thought to silly commercials on television. I get that this one seems fairly benign. But it perpetuates an attitude that I don’t like. It perpetuates a line of bullshit that is fed to every person who thinks they are doing some good by purchasing “humane” meat.

RELATED READING: Decoding the Humane Myth

Of course I’m not suggesting that anyone thinks there’s any chicken allowed to take his own roadtrip across America. But “free range” suggests a life that billions of chickens do not get to live. “Free range” is a bullshit term that can and does include animals who are lucky if they get to see the outdoors from an open doorway in the giant building they live in (if you can call that a life). That door doesn’t have to remain open – we’re talking minutes a day to earn the label “free range.” And no matter how “good” a life a chicken raised for eggs or food gets, she ends up in the same slaughterhouse as all of the other chickens, dying a violent death where she may experience abuse from her killers.

I realize that the people who think up ad campaigns for companies aren’t familiar with industrialized food or the treatment of animals at large. They aren’t required to be. But that’s a problem. Ignorance means they get a pass. And so does the company they create an ad for. That ignorance spreads like wildfire, and so the masses who consume endless talk shows, reality television shows, comedies and dramas are also off the hook when it comes to thinking about that chicken on the train as Roy Orbison sings “Ride Away” during one commercial break or another.

I’ll ride the highway
I’m going my way
I’ll leave a story untold

Those lyrics are something, aren’t they? The story left untold by this commercial is an important one. It’s the story of every chicken who dies every hour. It’s the story of all of the birds who succumbed to avian flu this year. It’s the story of a spent layer hen, destined for “low grade” meat once she’s given us all of the eggs we can take from her. It’s the story of the hen who fell asleep in my arms two years ago at Happy Trails Farm Sanctuary, safe from the fate so many of her sisters fall to.

Animals are exploited in countless ways – intentionally and unintentionally. GEICO may not mean to exploit animals with their “cute” ads for car insurance, but they do.