From Madeline Dennis, www.bridgeportintheknow.com
Join concerned citizens to speak out about the miserable lives of animals in the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus in the circus’s original home, Bridgeport, Connecticut. Local citizens will be protesting the Circus performances at the Webster Arena in Bridgeport October 18–21. Volunteers with large graphic signs and banners and handout literature will seek to educate the public about Ringling’s brutal treatment of its elephants and other performing animals. Local protesters from the international animal rights organizations In Defense of Animals and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and Animal Defenders International will also be present.
Activists will be in the plaza in front of the arena at 600 Main Street one hour before performances as parents with their children enter the event. Protests will be Thursday October 18 at 6 pm for opening night, Friday October 19 at 6 pm, Saturday October 20 at 4:45 pm and Sunday October 21 at 12:45 pm.
Circuses and Elephant Abuse
Ringling Bros. Barnum & Bailey Circus and other circuses worldwide have been the focus of animal abuse allegations. Ringling has been embroiled in controversy for abusive treatment of its Asian elephants, the symbols of the circus, including forcing ailing, arthritic elephants to perform, failure to adequately treat an infection in an elephant who later collapsed after a performance, and traveling with tuberculosis-infected elephants. Last year the U.S. Department of Agriculture fined Ringling an unprecedented $270,000 to settle charges of animal welfare violations, the largest fine ever assessed against an animal exhibitor.
According to eye-witness accounts, court documents and undercover photos and videos, Ringling’s elephants are beaten and hit on sensitive ears, legs and tongues with bullhooks (steel rods similar to fireplace pokers) to control and force them to perform unnatural tricks. Circus elephants spend the vast majority of their time chained or confined to small pens. Big cats are caged, depriving these animals of their natural need to roam long distances. Ringling takes baby elephants away from their mothers for documented violent training, has a history of calves dying under its care and forces too-young calves to travel and perform leaving them susceptible to serious, and often fatal, diseases. For more information, go to www.helpelephants.com or www.ringlingbeatsanimals.com.
Thanks for posting this, Lennie. Here is the rest of the article that explains Barnum and Bridgeport circus history, the fiasco in 2001 when the city had to pay Friends of Animals $9,000 and why Bridgeport circus protests are so important.
www .facebook.com/notes/bridgeport-in-the-know/protest-ringling-brothers-circus-in-bridgeport-oct-18-21-at-webster-bank-arena/474971962543594
*** Who’s protesting about the miserable lives of high tax-paying citizens in Bpt? ***
Oh for goodness sake, Mojo, the answer to that should be just so obvious … the people who should be protesting about the miserable lives of high tax-paying citizens in Bpt should be the high tax-paying citizens in Bpt who are miserable. But this is about the abuse of animals in circuses. Did you know these circuses are being banned all around the world as we speak?
*** Oh for goodness’ sake Bepo, don’t take things so seriously! Also besides the miserable high taxpayers in Bpt complaining, maybe those who are elected to watch such things up in Hartford for our city should be protesting, no? Maybe it’s time to call “TETA?” And in ending, I saw a TV article on the treatment of circus animals in general and it seems they’ve come a long way from what PETA protesters claim. Don’t you just love the dancing horses? *** WILBUR! ***
Mojo, to a lot of people this is a serious issue. Conditions for wild animals in circuses have not improved. They are being banned in countries all over the world and American cities too. CT almost banned elephants in circuses a few years ago and will try again. A few years from now there will be no wild animal entertainment in circuses and we will look back on it as a very old-fashioned and barbaric entertainment.
Do any of you PETA supporters have first-hand knowledge of PETA or Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus? I do!
Like any profession, you can hire a bad apple. The circus has in the past had a few bad apples work for them. However, as a whole Ringling has the most wonderful caring people working with their animals. The animal handlers, and people who perform with animals rely on the animals for their income. They do not abuse the very item they depend on to support them. Most of the animals on the show are not even owned by Ringling, but by the family that is supplying the act. Most of these families treat their animals like they were family members. These animals are treated better than a lot of families treat their children or spouses. I have first-hand experience with animals on Ringling! Do you? PETA protests, scares and intimidates families and children with their grandstanding gestures at highly public events. Where are they as an organization on the daily abuse of domestic animals? Nowhere because they can’t get the publicity. Do you know Ringling Brothers has the most successful elephant conservation program in the world?
Do you know Ringling was inspected 82 times from June to September by 18 different Federal agencies without incident?
Ringling may have had a bad apple in the past. A mistake no one regrets more than them. Instantly they rectified the problem and took many steps to ensure it would never happen again. Please don’t judge a company with an almost 100-year history because you believe the propaganda from PETA.
Join Ringling in some city where they do the “elephant walk.” Watch Peta protesters attack people, throw rocks and broken bottles at circus employees. Check out the number of times PETA has been fined for doctoring “undercover footage,” lying and fabricating evidence. Then talk to the over 1000 employees, full-time vets and organizations that live, work and care for the animals. Maybe then you can understand reality.
barney, I will assume you work for the circus. Yes, animal rights activists have seen the abuse first hand. There are many documented surveillance videos on line of the abuse. Yes of course the animal handlers feed and house their animals. The abuse we are talking about is the very cruel training of baby elephants, the abuse of being chained in place and the unnatural environment of concrete floors. Elephants were not made to stand on their heads and hind legs. There is serious arthritis and pain involved.
When you say most animals are not owned by Ringling I think you are referring to horses and dogs which are not the problem here. We are talking wild animals, not domesticated. Ringling’s elephant conservation center is double-speak since it is only the breeding ground for more circus elephants.
On your other points, there are many animal rights groups also active in the protection of domestic animals as well. Also most animal groups do not protest at the elephant walks because it is too dangerous to do that.
Last year the U.S. Department of Agriculture fined Ringling an unprecedented $270,000 to settle charges of animal welfare violations, the largest fine ever assessed against an animal exhibitor so this abuse is NOT a thing of the past. I love the circus, the clowns, the aerialists. We are not trying to close down the circus, but forcing wild animals to perform for our entertainment will soon be a thing of the past as many countries are starting to ban them.