• Donate Now
  • Volunteer
  • Contact Us
Wednesday, February 1, 2023
  • Login
  • Register
Big Cat Rescue
  • Get Involved
  • Cub Facts
  • The Sanctuary Cats
  • FAQs
  • Contact Us
  • Shop
  • Videos
  • Donate
No Result
View All Result
Big Cat Rescue
  • Get Involved
  • Cub Facts
  • The Sanctuary Cats
  • FAQs
  • Contact Us
  • Shop
  • Videos
  • Donate
No Result
View All Result
Big Cat Rescue
No Result
View All Result
Home Articles by BCR

Open Letter to Beyonce

BCR by BCR
March 9, 2015
in Articles by BCR, Cat Laws, Celebrities, News @ BCR, News World
0 0
1
Beyonce tiger cub  Open Letter to Beyonce jeg empty
0
SHARES
129
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare via Email

Open Letter to Beyonce

 

Beyonce,

I’d like to begin by saying that in some ways I truly admire you. Perhaps we have different views on some (or many) social issues, but I do see in you a deep desire to be kind to others. You seem to put great effort into being a progressive and independent woman and a role model not only to entertainment-obsessed masses, but to the youth of America (this includes your young daughter). I think it was, perhaps, a mother’s love and the need to provide your daughter with extraordinary opportunities, that you, yourself, never had, that was the impetus behind what was an incredibly misguided, but well intentioned action.

Beyonce tiger cub  Open Letter to Beyonce Beyonce

You and your husband brought your young daughter to Thailand and whilst there paid to have your family photographed while bottle feeding a tiger cub. No doubt in your mind this would be an image captured forever on film that would allow your daughter to look back on that family trip and say “Wow, how fortunate I was to be part of such a ‘rare’ experience.” What you did not know, and what I think, sadly, you still have not realized, is that while this experience was, indeed, amazing, it was also a form of animal abuse. One that does not occur only in Thailand, but all over the world.

Sadly, the practice of ‘paying to play’ is most prevalent here in the United States.

What seems like a harmless encounter to humans is, in actuality, just one brief moment in a lifetime of misery and abuse for these cubs. Here in America dozens of traveling zoos and roadside exhibits make quite a pretty penny by charging members of the public to pet, play with, or even swim with adolescent wild animals. The most common victims in the ‘pay to play scheme, are cubs of the big cats.

What the public doesn’t understand, is that the adorable babies they get to hold have been ripped from the care of their mothers, artificially orphaned, and thrust into a short life of suffering and abuse as nothing more than photography props.

The inhumane treatment begins early on with the removal of the cubs from their mothers. At this vulnerable age their immune systems are not fully developed and the intense stress and exposure from constant handling puts them at great risk for disease or fatality. Unnatural habitats and prolonged photo sessions leave the cubs unable to regulate their sleep patterns, which further damages their growth. Forced to endure being passed around like merchandise and exposure to flashbulbs, some of them develop vision and limb problems. Many suffer the removal of their claws and teeth, in order to guarantee the safety of the customers paying to hold them.

Others are starved in an attempt to stunt their growth, thus keeping them viable for use in ‘pay to play’ gigs even as they age. I will never forget the first time I watched a cub-handling encounter on YouTube.

 

The way the handlers roughly grabbed them and hung them by their armpits to “reset” them, claiming that this is how they would be held in the wild, blowing in their faces to “calm” them down. Or the heartbreaking cries of protest from the cubs as they were tossed from stranger to stranger simply for entertainment value.

As a mother, I am sure you can’t imagine letting anyone handle your child in such a way.

The luckiest cubs will grow too large or too aggressive to be useful as photo props, and subsequently will be spared the prison sentence of a life in captivity. Instead, they will be sold for use in canned hunts. Taken to open land and released for a few precious moment before the bullet of a paying hunter puts an end to their short-lived joy. Others will be butchered outright, their body parts sold on the blackmarket. As I said, those animals are the lucky ones. Many ‘pay to play’ cubs will, unfortunately, become part of the exotic animal trade, an industry which is surpassed in profit only by drugs and guns.

I share all this with you now, not to shame you. I know you have been slandered and criticized by many because of your actions. While I understand the anger that many people feel, what some fail to understand is that the fault lies not only on your shoulders. We must also blame a lack of education within our society. Fault also lies within our media. Commercials and television programs glorify the idea of turning wild animals into pets, and precious little attention is given to the vile underworld of animal trafficking and the abuse associated with ‘pay to play’ venues.

Why has so little attention been paid to this horrendous form of abuse?

Why is it allowed to go on legally in so many parts of our country and elsewhere in the world? Equally culpable are our lawmakers. At what point do we say, “We must change the laws that allow this to continue”?

Ms. Carter, you did not create the industry that propagates this kind of abuse, but I ask you now to take a stand against it. Channel your inner Sasha Fierce and speak out on behalf of those who have no voice of their own. We need your help. JessicaJamesJansonLegislative  Open Letter to Beyonce JessicaJamesJansonLegislative 300x300The baby wild animals need your help.

There is no shame in making a mistake, no matter how erroneous, if you acknowledge that mistake and embrace the change that allows you to become a more enlightened human being. I hope my words find you somehow through social media and that not only do they inspire you to instigate change, but that they help you realize that as human beings we are fallible. In the end you are not guilty of anything but remaining silent.

With warm regards and hope for the future of all the Earth’s children,

Jessica James Janson

Previous Post

Why Is It Bad to Pet Cubs?

Next Post

Mickey Cougar Surgery Update

BCR

BCR

Big Cat Rescue is Caring for Cats and Ending the Trade

Related Posts

News @ BCR

Insitu2021

January 17, 2023
61
2023-bigcatrescueinsitu  Open Letter to Beyonce jeg empty
News @ BCR

2022 Annual Report

December 31, 2022
290
Jinx_Leopard_Big Cat Rescue_ BrittanyMira  Open Letter to Beyonce jeg empty
Memorials

Jinx

December 24, 2022
9.8k
SaberToothSleuth  Open Letter to Beyonce jeg empty
Articles by BCR

Saber Tooth Sleuth

December 23, 2022
397
Priya bathing. Priya tiger at Big Cat Rescue.  Open Letter to Beyonce jeg empty
Featured Cat Videos

Priya bathing. Priya tiger at Big Cat Rescue.

December 9, 2022
465
Next Post
Mickey-Cougar-ACL-2015-1  Open Letter to Beyonce jeg empty

Mickey Cougar Surgery Update

Leave a Reply

  • Default Comments (1)
  • Facebook Comments

One response to “Open Letter to Beyonce”

  1. Tressa Nicole Lackey says:
    November 27, 2018 at 11:17 am

    Thank you so Much!!!

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Help Feed Big Cats

One of the best ways to help is through general donations that can be used however it is most needed at the time.To make a general donation just click the Donate Now button below.  This is the best way to give as it has the lowest credit card processing fees and is immediate help for the cats.

Give to Big Cat Rescue

If you prefer to donate via Pay Pal, please use this link: Pay Pal

Recent Articles

  • Insitu2021 January 17, 2023
  • Smell my beans! Priya tiger at Big Cat Rescue. January 13, 2023
  • Want! Kekoa and Makani rehab bobcats at Big Cat Rescue. January 13, 2023

Recent Comments

  • Deb Quimby on Koda Lioness
  • heather elliott on Sapphire
  • Jason Jenkins on Tiger Facts
  • Claire Pritchett on Koda Lioness
  • Deb Quimby on Jinx

Save Big Cats

Donate to Big Cat Rescue

Sanctuary Cats

  • Jaguars
  • Leopards
  • Lions
  • Tigers
  • Bobcats
  • Canada Lynx
  • Cougars
  • Ocelots
  • Savannah Cats
  • Servals

More from Big Cats

  • Big Cat Rescue is Live 24/7 on Webcams
  • Rescue Missions
  • About Big Cat Rescue
  • Big Cat Rescue News
  • Reviews
  • Our Recent Work
  • Sanctuary FAQs
  • Big Cat TV

Insitu2021

January 17, 2023
Smell my beans! Priya tiger at Big Cat Rescue.  Open Letter to Beyonce jeg empty

Smell my beans! Priya tiger at Big Cat Rescue.

January 13, 2023
Want! Kekoa and Makani rehab bobcats at Big Cat Rescue.  Open Letter to Beyonce jeg empty

Want! Kekoa and Makani rehab bobcats at Big Cat Rescue.

January 13, 2023

© Copyright 2023 BigCatRescue.Org. All Rights Reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Login
  • Sign Up
  • About BCR
  • Videos
  • Big Cat Facts
  • Cub Facts
  • Our Cat Stories
  • Sanctuary Cats
  • Shop and Save Cats
  • Volunteer
  • Donate
  • Abuse Issues
  • Contact Us

© Copyright 2023 BigCatRescue.Org. All Rights Reserved.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Add New Playlist