Vegan Musician Donates $100k to ACLU

On Monday, Australian-born singer and vegan Sia Furler (known as “Sia”) donated $100,000 to human rights organization American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). The singer was prompted to action by Friday’s immigration ban imposed by Donald Trump on people from several countries with primarily Muslim populations. The ACLU quickly took action to free two refugees detained at New York’s John F. Kennedy airport by filing an emergency lawsuit on Saturday night. A federal judge granted their motion, allowing the refugees to enter the United States. In light of those events, over the weekend animal advocate Sia took to Twitter, stating that she would match her followers’ contributions to the ACLU up to $100,000. Sia’s followers delivered, ultimately donating $200,000, and the singer kept to her promise. Last year, Sia gave former Survivor contestant Tai Trang $100,000—$50,000 was handed to Trang personally, and an additional $50,000 was donated to an animal charity of his choosing, following his adoption of “Mark the Chicken,” saving the bird from being eaten by the other contestants. Sia’s actions represent a point of intersection in veganism that includes compassion for both animals and humans.