Animals
New York City Kitten Rescue Defends ‘No’ ‘MAGA’ Adoption Policy Amid PETA Backlash
A New York City kitten rescue has stirred up a debate over whether politics should play a role in deciding who gets to adopt a pet.
Itty Bitty City Kitties, a rescue based in Rockaway Beach, announced a policy update in a Facebook post on Tuesday, September 22, with a photo of a kitten and the words “NO. [Expletive]. MAGA.”
The rescue’s caption began: “That’s it. That’s the policy. MAGA? Nope. Conservative? Nope. ‘I’m not political’? Nice loophole. Still nope.” It went on to describe the homes it wanted for the kittens: “a tote bag collection, oat milk, an aggressively progressive group chat, a compost bin, NPR playing somewhere in the background, and someone who has rage-donated to mutual aid at least once.”
The post spread further when Libs of TikTok shared it on X the next day. People in the comment section disagreed over the rescue’s priorities. “You’d think these people would prioritize getting homes for stray animals,” one wrote. “They don’t want to adopt animals to people who will abuse animals. That makes sense,” another wrote.
In a follow-up Facebook post, Itty Bitty City Kitties stood by its decision, writing, “I do not adopt vulnerable kittens to humans who condone cruelty.” The rescue said its application process looks for “empathy and basic reality testing,” arguing that people who excuse cruelty or believe conspiracy theories lack the judgment needed to care for a kitten. The rescue also said it had received fake applications and hostile messages since the original post.
Samantha Knox, the rescue’s director, said that the group’s “primary responsibility is ensuring the animals in our care go to safe, compassionate homes,” Fox News reported on Wednesday, September 23.
Per the outlet, Knox explained that the rescue does not reject applicants based on registered political party affiliation, though it considers their public conduct and expressed values. Knox did not give a yes-or-no answer as to whether a MAGA supporter with no history of cruelty, threats, neglect or violence could adopt.
Ingrid Newkirk, founder of PETA, urged the rescue to reconsider. “Homeless animals don’t care which side of abortion you are on or whether you believe in global warming or support Palestine or Israel, or if you don’t vote at all, ever: they care if you love them and will give them a good home,” she said, per the report. “We hope this policy, which is humancentric, is reconsidered and abolished.”
PETA said an applicant’s history of animal care, ability to meet a pet’s needs and any evidence of cruelty or neglect should guide adoption decisions. “Shelters and rescues exist to protect animals, not to serve as political gatekeepers,” the organization said, the outlet reported.
