full story and comments: http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/1304810--peta-and-alf-take-opposite-strategies-in-anti-fur-fight

Ed. note: The ALF would not consider these tactics to be "opposite" tactics, but rather "complimentary" tactics.

The fur is flying among animal-rights activists in Toronto, as People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals stages a fur coat giveaway days after the Animal Liberation Front vandalized two downtown stores.

PETA will distribute 30 fur coats to women from four homeless shelters at John Innes Community Centre Thursday, hoping to send the message that only Toronto's most needy citizens should ever wear fur.

"We can't bring the animals back, but we can bring a little warmth to people in desperate need," said Emily Lavender of PETA.

PETA receives hundreds of donated coats every year from people who have had a change of heart about fur. Their so-called "fur kitchens" have been held in the U.S. since 1988, but Thursday's giveaway marks a first in Canada.

But the event comes on the heels of an attack on two stores that sell fur and leather. Four Seasons Fur and T.O. Leather Fashions Ltd. -- within a three-block radius near Spadina Ave. and Adelaide St. W. -- both had a foul-smelling chemical sprayed into their stores early Tuesday.

"This is what you get for profiting off of violence and suffering. This was your first attack but will not be your last," an anonymous ALF member wrote in an email to activist magazine Bite Back.

The letter is signed, "Until every cage is empty, Toronto ALF." A New York-based spokesperson, Will Hazlitt, confirmed the email was written by an ALF member.

ALF and PETA are not affiliated, and Lavender insisted that her organization does not condone illegal or violent tactics.