Letter: Petition would harm Oregon’s rural lifestyle 

Initiative Petition 28, People for the Elimination of Animal Cruelty Exemptions, “The PEACE Act,” is anything but peaceful. It is an embodiment of the urban Portland vegan lifestyle not respecting, not co-existing, but rather running roughshod over the rural Oregon way of life.

It criminalizes all hunting, fishing and slaughtering of animals including in commercial enterprises. It criminalizes most breeding practices, the docking of horses and the dehorning of cattle. It even criminalizes harming vermin such as mice and rats. It would destroy rodeos and ranches in Oregon. It rips at the very fabric of generational life in rural Oregon.

We cannot afford to passively hope this initiative fails. They have already turned in 50,000 signatures toward the 117,000 verified signatures needed by July 2026 for the November 2026 ballot. We hoped and believed Measure 114 was too unrealistic to pass, and yet it did. Hoping won’t cut it.

Please unite with us in an opposition group with a plan to beat this. Please join us on Facebook by joining the group “Oregonians Against the PEACE Act.” Tell your stories there with pictures to celebrate the liberties we enjoy. Invite your like-minded Facebook friends to the group. Look over the plan for our opposition. Please help us fight this initiative.

Roxanne Ross

Oregon City