Date
July 11, 2006
Contact
Alfredo Kuba
(650) 965-8705
Kristie Phelps
(757) 423-0093
In Defense of Animals
3010 Kerner Blvd
San Rafael
CA 94901
IDA is an international, California-based animal advocacy organization dedicated to ending the abuse and exploitation of animals by defending their rights, welfare and habitats.
IDA to Spotlight Cruelty Under the Big Top
Activists Urge Circus to Call in the Clowns and Leave the Animals Alone
Fresno, Calif.—Holding posters reading, “The Cruelest Show On Earth,” that depict the shackled legs of elephants used in circuses, and giving out free circus coloring books, members of Silicon Valley In Defense of Animals (SVIDA) will urge local residents to boycott the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus:
When: Wednesday, July 12 at 6:00 p.m.
Where: Selland Arena Fresno California, 700 M Street
Elephants, bears, big cats, and other animals used in circuses spend their entire lives in completely artificial conditions. In their natural habitats, these animals graze, hunt, seek out mates, and raise families--behaviors completely denied in captivity. Animals suffer psychological distress when the ability to act out their natural instincts is repressed. The physical conditions animals used in circuses are kept in are equally detrimental. Animals are kept in transport trailers and hauled from one city to the next, sometimes 50 weeks out of the year.
The Ringling Bros. Circus has a troubling history with the animals in its care, including the death of Riccardo, an 8-month-old elephant who fractured both hind legs when he fell off a circus pedestal in August 2004. In July 2004, Clyde, a 2-year-old lion, died while traveling through the intense heat of the Mojave Desert in a poorly ventilated boxcar.
“Animals used in circuses perform out of fear of punishment. They are deprived of everything natural to them,” said SVIDA spokesperson Alfredo Kuba. “The best thing caring people can do is vote against circus cruelty with their dollars and boycott the circus.”
For more information, please visit www.IDAUSA.org.