Lawsuit reveals little has changed at Ringling
June 15th, 2007 by admin
On Tuesday, the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus arrived in Pensacola for a week of performances. To coincide with the arrival of the circus, the Humane Society of the United States released the results, so far, of a lawsuit filed by several animal welfare organizations charging Ringling Bros. with violations of the Endangered Species Act.
Records provided by Ringling in response to the suit describe a horrible incident from 2005 in which an elephant handler hooked an elephant named Lutzi several times under her trunk and behind her leg, leaving blood dripping on the floor of an arena. In addition, witnesses and former circus employees have given sworn testimony that behind-the-scenes, elephants remain chained by one front and hind leg, unable to move freely, for up to 20 hours each day.
Ringling Bros. will return to Florida this winter. ARFF will be present at each show to tell the public about Ringling’s cruelty.