Mermaid Parade in Coney Island Saturday ("Nearly Naked PETA Beauties" included)

Thanks for PETA for reminding me that the Mermaid Parade is this Saturday in Coney Island! How did PETA remind me? With an email subject that said “NEARLY NAKED PETA BEAUTIES TO JOIN CONEY ISLAND MERMAID PARADE”, and this text:

What: Wearing little more than “fins” and “tails” and holding signs that read, “Fish Are Friends, Not Food,” two sexy PETA members will dress as mermaids and take part in the Coney Island Mermaid Day Parade on Saturday to encourage onlookers to give fish a break and stop eating them.

“Although we might not be as familiar with fish, when it comes to feeling pain and having a will to live, they’re just like all other animals,” says PETA “mermaid” Ashley Byrne. “And the more we learn about these sensitive and intelligent animals, the less likely we are to stick a hook or a fork in them.”

Scientific studies show that fish are intelligent, sensitive animals who experience pain and fear when they are hooked or netted and pulled from the water. A recent issue of the journal Fish and Fisheries cited more than 500 research papers on fish intelligence that prove that fish are smart, can use tools, and have impressive long-term memories and sophisticated social structures.

Where: The parade starts at the intersection of W. 21st Street and Surf Avenue, Coney Island

When: Saturday, June 22, 1 p.m.

PETA of course won’t be the only nearly naked people walking around Coney Island Saturday thanks to the support of hundreds of generous donors who helped save the annual parade of scantily dressed people. More info on the main event and the Riverboat Ball at Coney Island USA. There’s also a “Drunken Mermaid Gala” at Gowanus Ballroom with Extra Action Marching Band, Vic Thrill and more.