Vegan activist Tash Peterson slammed by Piers Morgan over Holocaust comments

High-profile vegan activist Tash Peterson has clashed with British media personality Piers Morgan in a fiery TV segment.

High-profile vegan activist Tash Peterson has earned the ire of British media personality Piers Morgan over her comments comparing the slaughter of farm animals to the Holocaust.

The Aussie woman, 29, appeared on Morgan’s TV program Uncensored wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with her catch cry “end this holocaust” and an image of a pig in a cage, with the fiery host wasting no time in kicking off a debate.

He introduced his guest by suggesting the reason people were losing interest in veganism was because they were “fed up with being shouted out”.

“You’re (Peterson) one of those people that runs into restaurants and plays sounds from screaming animals in abattoirs and so on,” he posed to the passionate WA protester.

Morgan said he ‘didn’t mind people being vegan,’ but was damning of Peterson’s protest methods. Picture: Instagram

Peterson wore a T-shirt bearing her controversial Holocaust statement. Picture: Instagram

“No, I don’t think so at all, I think it brings more attention to the animal holocaust,” Peterson offered, to which Morgan interjected: “Why would you use the word holocaust?

“Holocaust is the mass extermination of more than six million Jewish people by Adolf Hitler and the Nazis,” he said.

“Why would you use that very emotive language knowing it would offend people?”

Responding that it was “just a factual statement,” Ms Peterson said: “If you look at the definition of a holocaust it is slaughter or destruction on a mass scale.

“Multiple holocausts have occurred throughout human history and non-human animals can be subjected to the same atrocities that humans can.”

Morgan’s disdain for the comparison was backed by fellow guest Tomi Lahren, a conservative political commentator and the daughter of cattle ranchers.

“Speaking of the animal holocaust I think is a ridiculous thing to say,” Ms Lahren added.

“There is no one that cares more for their animals than those in the ranching and farming communities.”

Morgan had earlier appeared to mock Ms Peterson’s Instagram handle, “@vganbooty”, asking if she went by the name “Vegan or V-Gan or Miss Booty or what”.

“Tash Peterson is fine,” she replied.

Elsewhere, Peterson, who was recently charged for allegedly refusing to leave a Perth restaurant during a clash with anti-vegan chef John Mountain, took aim at British TV personality Bear Grylls for being a “fake vegan”.

Morgan had pointed out Grylls’ recent abandonment of veganism because he realised it was “bad for the environment and bad for himself”.

“He was never a vegan in the first place,” Peterson shot back.

“Veganism is an ethical view against animal abuse and murder.”

“He wrote a vegan cookbook,” Piers rebutted. “Are you calling him a liar?”

Peterson is no stranger to controversy, having recently been charged over an incident at Perth restaurant Fyre. Picture: Instagram

“People go by that label all the time but if they truly hold an ethical view against animal abuse and murder they’d never turn their back on veganism,” Peterson said.

Morgan ended the tense chat by scolding Ms Peterson’s controversial protest methods, saying there were better tactics to convince people to switch to a vegan diet “than running into restaurants and playing noises of screaming animals”.

Peterson is currently in the UK for the Vegan Camp Out Festival where she will appear as a guest speaker.

She was required to seek clearance from a Perth court for the trip after she was charged with failing to leave a licensed venue, disorderly conduct and trespass.

Peterson will appear via videolink for her next court appearance on July 31.

Originally published as Vegan activist Tash Peterson slammed by Piers Morgan over Holocaust comments