SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Grizzlies cross the road in Wyoming. (Photo:rwarrin/flickr/cc)
Jane Goodall Among Creative Protesters Seeking to Stop Wyoming's First Grizzly Trophy Hunt in Four Decades
The goal of the campaign: "Shoot'em with a camera" not a gun
Jul 18, 2018
Legendary conservationist Jane Goodall is among those taking part in a creative action to thwart Wyoming's first grizzly bear hunt in 44 years.
The idea behind the "shoot'em with a camera" campaign was to make sure that as many non-hunters as possible applied for the 22 permits the state's offering for the fall hunt. The short window to be part of the lottery drawing ended Monday.
The federal government paved way for the "threat of state-sponsored trophy hunting" last June when the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced--to the ire of conservation groups--it was removing the Yellowstone-area grizzly population from the list of species protected by the Endangered Species Act. The state wildlife commission then voted unanimously to allow for the hunt.
It's not clear at this point how many of the roughly 7,000 applicants hoping to be randomly chosen for one of the permits are people those who want to kill one of the iconic animals, or protesters.
One of those behind the women-led campaign, Lisa Robertson, co-founder of conservation group Wyoming Untrapped, expressed optimism, however. "We've got at least 1,000, maybe 2,000--maybe more," she told the Jackson Hole News & Guide. "People signed up. Their whole families signed up. We had some big heavy hitters sign up as well."
In addition to Goodall, the "heavy hitters" also include noted elephant conservationists Cynthia Moss.
The idea behind the action, that is, to get out in the field and "hunt" with a camera, emerged on social media recently--just July 8. "If you are chosen and meet the requirements," the campaign's GoFundMe page says, "the funds will cover the necessary costs to participate in the field with a camera."
"I think we surprised ourselves at how much public support this has gotten in so little time," Robertson told National Geographic.
Over six dozen scientists wrote a letter in April to Wyoming's Republican Gov. Matt Mead, urging him to put off the hunt. "To trophy hunt such a vulnerable population is ethically irresponsible, unwarranted, and not in the public's interest," they declared.
New information only underscores that irresponsibility, say conservation groups. Citing newly confirmed grizzly mortalities that took place in 2017, the groups said in a letter sent Monday to state officials: "While the undersigned believe that any hunting to grizzly ears in Wyoming is unsustainable, Wyoming's planned fall 2018 hunting quotas must, at a minimum, account for these deaths."
If conservation and indigenous groups get their way, however, the hunt, set for Sept. 1 - Nov 15, 2018, won't happen at all.
A federal court in Missoula, Mont. is holding a hearing in August, and could find that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service erred in removing the grizzly bear from Endangered Species Act protection.
*This post has been corrected. In one instance, the state mentioned was Washington when it should have been Wyoming.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, The U.S. is on a fast track to authoritarianism like nothing I've ever seen. Meanwhile, corporate news outlets are utterly capitulating to Trump, twisting their coverage to avoid drawing his ire while lining up to stuff cash in his pockets. That's why I believe that Common Dreams is doing the best and most consequential reporting that we've ever done. Our small but mighty team is a progressive reporting powerhouse, covering the news every day that the corporate media never will. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. And to ignite change for the common good. Now here's the key piece that I want all our readers to understand: None of this would be possible without your financial support. That's not just some fundraising cliche. It's the absolute and literal truth. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. Will you donate now to help power the nonprofit, independent reporting of Common Dreams? Thank you for being a vital member of our community. Together, we can keep independent journalism alive when it’s needed most. - Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Legendary conservationist Jane Goodall is among those taking part in a creative action to thwart Wyoming's first grizzly bear hunt in 44 years.
The idea behind the "shoot'em with a camera" campaign was to make sure that as many non-hunters as possible applied for the 22 permits the state's offering for the fall hunt. The short window to be part of the lottery drawing ended Monday.
The federal government paved way for the "threat of state-sponsored trophy hunting" last June when the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced--to the ire of conservation groups--it was removing the Yellowstone-area grizzly population from the list of species protected by the Endangered Species Act. The state wildlife commission then voted unanimously to allow for the hunt.
It's not clear at this point how many of the roughly 7,000 applicants hoping to be randomly chosen for one of the permits are people those who want to kill one of the iconic animals, or protesters.
One of those behind the women-led campaign, Lisa Robertson, co-founder of conservation group Wyoming Untrapped, expressed optimism, however. "We've got at least 1,000, maybe 2,000--maybe more," she told the Jackson Hole News & Guide. "People signed up. Their whole families signed up. We had some big heavy hitters sign up as well."
In addition to Goodall, the "heavy hitters" also include noted elephant conservationists Cynthia Moss.
The idea behind the action, that is, to get out in the field and "hunt" with a camera, emerged on social media recently--just July 8. "If you are chosen and meet the requirements," the campaign's GoFundMe page says, "the funds will cover the necessary costs to participate in the field with a camera."
"I think we surprised ourselves at how much public support this has gotten in so little time," Robertson told National Geographic.
Over six dozen scientists wrote a letter in April to Wyoming's Republican Gov. Matt Mead, urging him to put off the hunt. "To trophy hunt such a vulnerable population is ethically irresponsible, unwarranted, and not in the public's interest," they declared.
New information only underscores that irresponsibility, say conservation groups. Citing newly confirmed grizzly mortalities that took place in 2017, the groups said in a letter sent Monday to state officials: "While the undersigned believe that any hunting to grizzly ears in Wyoming is unsustainable, Wyoming's planned fall 2018 hunting quotas must, at a minimum, account for these deaths."
If conservation and indigenous groups get their way, however, the hunt, set for Sept. 1 - Nov 15, 2018, won't happen at all.
A federal court in Missoula, Mont. is holding a hearing in August, and could find that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service erred in removing the grizzly bear from Endangered Species Act protection.
*This post has been corrected. In one instance, the state mentioned was Washington when it should have been Wyoming.
Legendary conservationist Jane Goodall is among those taking part in a creative action to thwart Wyoming's first grizzly bear hunt in 44 years.
The idea behind the "shoot'em with a camera" campaign was to make sure that as many non-hunters as possible applied for the 22 permits the state's offering for the fall hunt. The short window to be part of the lottery drawing ended Monday.
The federal government paved way for the "threat of state-sponsored trophy hunting" last June when the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced--to the ire of conservation groups--it was removing the Yellowstone-area grizzly population from the list of species protected by the Endangered Species Act. The state wildlife commission then voted unanimously to allow for the hunt.
It's not clear at this point how many of the roughly 7,000 applicants hoping to be randomly chosen for one of the permits are people those who want to kill one of the iconic animals, or protesters.
One of those behind the women-led campaign, Lisa Robertson, co-founder of conservation group Wyoming Untrapped, expressed optimism, however. "We've got at least 1,000, maybe 2,000--maybe more," she told the Jackson Hole News & Guide. "People signed up. Their whole families signed up. We had some big heavy hitters sign up as well."
In addition to Goodall, the "heavy hitters" also include noted elephant conservationists Cynthia Moss.
The idea behind the action, that is, to get out in the field and "hunt" with a camera, emerged on social media recently--just July 8. "If you are chosen and meet the requirements," the campaign's GoFundMe page says, "the funds will cover the necessary costs to participate in the field with a camera."
"I think we surprised ourselves at how much public support this has gotten in so little time," Robertson told National Geographic.
Over six dozen scientists wrote a letter in April to Wyoming's Republican Gov. Matt Mead, urging him to put off the hunt. "To trophy hunt such a vulnerable population is ethically irresponsible, unwarranted, and not in the public's interest," they declared.
New information only underscores that irresponsibility, say conservation groups. Citing newly confirmed grizzly mortalities that took place in 2017, the groups said in a letter sent Monday to state officials: "While the undersigned believe that any hunting to grizzly ears in Wyoming is unsustainable, Wyoming's planned fall 2018 hunting quotas must, at a minimum, account for these deaths."
If conservation and indigenous groups get their way, however, the hunt, set for Sept. 1 - Nov 15, 2018, won't happen at all.
A federal court in Missoula, Mont. is holding a hearing in August, and could find that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service erred in removing the grizzly bear from Endangered Species Act protection.
*This post has been corrected. In one instance, the state mentioned was Washington when it should have been Wyoming.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.