Norfolk, Va. - Measuring 300 square feet and consisting of more than 100 decorative squares--each made by PETA supporters and each carrying a unique message about why fish deserve compassion--PETA's brand-new "Fish Empathy Quilt" will soon be displayed outside "seafood" restaurants and aquariums across the country. The quilt--which was recently displayed in cities including New York, Boston, and Baltimore--colorfully illustrates that fish are intelligent, intriguing animals who feel pain and that they don't deserve to be violently killed for food, painfully hooked for "sport," or cruelly confined in aquariums. The following are just a few examples of the creative squares submitted from across the U.S. and Canada:

* Connie Herges of Milaca, Minn., drew a picture of a tuna holding a picket sign that reads, "Don't Can Me!"
* Monica Ferroe of Metairie, La., submitted a square that shows a hooked fish and a hooked dog next to the tagline "If you wouldn't hook a dog, then don't hook a fish."
* Kimber Dilay of Winnipeg, Manitoba, made a square entitled "Fish Are Friends, Not Food"--employing the PETA slogan made famous in Finding Nemo. Kimber stopped fishing with her grandfather when she realized the suffering it caused and instead found peaceful ways to spend time with him.
* A Girl Scout troop from Austin, Texas, submitted four squares as part of earning their Oceans patch after hearing from a former commercial fisher about the harm that fishing does to the oceans and its inhabitants.

Dragged from the ocean depths, fish undergo excruciating decompression before they are tossed onto ships' decks to slowly suffocate. Angling also causes enormous suffering. Besides the pain caused by hooks, a high percentage of fish caught in "catch-and-release" tournaments die within a matter of days.

"Our Fish Empathy Quilt includes 100 good reasons to show fish respect," says PETA Vice President Bruce Friedrich. "It's a true original, combining craft with compassion to spread the message that harming these fascinating animals is every bit as unacceptable as abusing cats, dogs, or any other animals."

To view images of the quilt, please visit PETA's Web site FishingHurts.com