Kelis Fires off Angry Letter to PETA

Most stars who dare to be seen in public wearing fur eventually get an intimidating cease and desist letter from the animal-rights organization PETA. There are a few different paths celebrities can take after receiving said letter. There's the Aretha Franklin route, otherwise known as ignore-PETA-and-continue-to-leave-the-house-dripping-in-chinchilla-pelts route. If one is so inclined, one could follow the Beyoncé path of least resistance and stop wearing fur altogether. Or just do like Naomi Campbell -- tell PETA you'll stop wearing fur and then do it anyway.

And then there's the Kelis path, which is to take to your MySpace page and write an angry pro-carnivore, pro-fur letter to PETA and the world to read. The singer and new mother (and ardent consumer of animal products) was so offended by an unsolicited e-mail she recently received from the organization about her fur wearing that she fired off a post in which she called for the death of all rodents and asserts she would "eat pterodactyl if you found some and you told [her] it was meaty and delicious."

Kelis wrote that she draws the line at wearing skin or fur from endangered species but enjoys chinchilla and mink fur because "it's warm as hell and feels glorious."

Instead of worrying about animal rights, Kelis wrote, PETA should concern itself with underpaid minorities working on farms and international women's issues. Despite the weighty topics, Kelis also took a moment to briefly complain about the effect PETA's anti-fur campaign is having on the world of style.

"The death of high fashion," she wrote. "Ugh." Read her blog post in its entirety here.

UPDATE: PETA gave Black Voices exclusive access to the private e-mail message sent to Kelis on Jan. 12:

"Dear Kelis,

I hope that this finds you well. I'm writing today because we've been inundated with phone calls and e-mails from folks alerting us to photos of you wearing a fur hat and coat while out in London over the weekend.

Please know that animals killed for their fur endure immense suffering. Foxes, minks, coyotes, and rabbits -- and even dogs and cats -- are bludgeoned, strangled, genitally electrocuted and even skinned alive for their pelts. ...

If you enjoy the look of fur, renowned designers, including Calvin Klein, Tommy Hilfiger, Stella McCartney, and Vivienne Westwood, couple fashion with compassion and use only faux fur in their lines. We hope you found this information helpful and will join countless celebrities, like Charlize Theron, Khloe Kardashian, Nia Long, Kid Sister, Pink, and Michelle Obama, in publicly swearing off fur. Thanks so much for your time and attention, and best wishes for a great 2010!"

The e-mail also included a link to an undercover video expose of fur farms narrated by Eva Mendes.

Now that you've heard both sides, who is right and who is wrong? Which side do you fall on in the fur debate?