The Long Island Commission of Rabbis, an Orthodox group, has filed a $1,000,000 libel suit against the Friends of Animals, Inc., the New York Times and 58 individuals whose names were listed in an advertisement that appeared in the Times on March 1 protesting what it called the “obviously cruel procedure” of “shackling and hoisting” conscious animals prior to kosher slaughter.
The rabbinical group contends in the suit that the advertisement, which was sponsored by the Friends of Animals and the 58 individuals, maliciously characterized the organization’s views on proposed legislation governing kosher slaughter as being motivated by economic rather than religious motives.
They charged that the advertisement libeled them by saying that they were “paid to supervise kosher catering establishments and butcher shops. ” The Commission declares in the suit that none of the rabbis in the organization was paid for his dietary supervision.
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