The highly anticipated midterm elections yielded promising results for some, yet animals will face pain and violence at the hands of some North Carolina residents. The state has passed the “Right to Hunt, Fish, and Harvest Wildlife” amendment which not only grants people the “right” to hunt, it will prevent laws from being enacted that would protect animals and their habitats in the future.

Members of the North Carolina Legislative Sportsmen's Caucus sponsored this amendment, which was seemingly designed to draw out very specific voting demographics. Lawmakers have made significant efforts to link anti-gun and anti-hunting legislation to be one and the same, an issue which splinters down party lines.

The majority of hunters are male Republicans, especially in rural southern areas, including North Carolina where they have conservative ideologies and have voted Republican in the last nine Presidential elections. This passing of this amendment was to be decided during the highly contentious midterm elections and said to draw out hunters, gun owners, and conservative Republicans to collect votes for Republican candidates, due to the language used in the amendment which aimed to scare all gun owners and second amendment supporters into thinking their right to own guns was in jeopardy. 

This amendment was also implemented to increase the sales of state fishing and hunting licenses to keep hunting, fishing, and “harvesting” animals through brutal trapping and other horrific means, alive in the state while the majority of the country rejects these violent forms of entertainment.

21 other states have amendments granting their residents the “right” to hunt and fish. The National Rifle Association, known for its aggressive, self-serving tactics, provides model language for pro-hunting and fishing amendments. This language was regurgitated almost verbatim in North Carolina’s amendment, suggesting these changes to state constitutions are primarily a ploy to strengthen the NRA. 

This amendment not only allows individuals to “enjoy wildlife-associated recreation in perpetuity” by killing animals without consequence, this catastrophic and short-sighted bill will also shut down any hunting and trapping related legislation in the future.

Please support our efforts to continue to speak out on behalf of animals who are senselessly killed for “sport.”