Tribute to Cecil the Lion
‘I believe in God, only I spell it Nature,’ Frank Lloyd Wright
Can murder ever be a good thing? I’m not condoning it, but can there be something powerfully positive which comes out of one single death? And could it be that the death of a beautiful old lion in Zimbabwe could become not just a symbol of what’s distorted and ugly in mankind but a turning point for lionkind?
To imagine Cecil being lured out of his home, incapacitated by an arrow, stalked before being shot to death, then beheaded and skinned by a dentist from Minnesota for $55,000 has outraged us. This outrage has shot throughout the world on social media like a bolt of pain through our nervous system. Our fingers and toes flex in tension, but we don’t know how to release it. So please pause for a moment — let’s use this tension and momentum for good.
Over the last year or so we’ve had many images of people like Melissa Bachman and Rachel Francis proudly posing by the limp body of a lion or giraffe but they caused a ripple in our awareness only. Cecil’s death has caused a tidal wave of grief and anger which can be channeled to achieve far more than wiping out the perpetrators dental practice.
To see an entire gallery of smiling faces above lifeless bodies to fuel your outrage click here:
What is it about Cecil’s death which has provoked us so much more?
Energy builds little by little until it can no longer be tolerated. Like pain in the body, we live with it until it becomes too intense. Then we seek intervention. This attack on the 13-year-old lion, a favourite tourist attraction at the Zimbabwe’s famous Hwange National Park may be the straw that broke the camels back. If so where can we channel this energy?
‘We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.’ Albert Einstein
Cecil was a well-known, long-lived lion. His death leaves a gaping hole in his pride where the next in line for the throne will kill Cecils young offspring in order to become dominant. His murder will be felt by visitors for a long time. But what of all the other lions we never hear about? The ones we don’t even know exist? Is it okay for them to be hunted and shot for money? Can we once and for all let this big cat out of the bag?
Is the murder of a favourite worse than the murder of an unknown?
Canned hunting is legal in South Africa. Over eight thousand lions are held in cages ready to be slaughtered for great wads of cash. This does not serve conservation, it just lines pockets. This multi-million dollar industry is run from farms where lions are bred for the bullet. They’re reared in inhumane conditions and when old enough for the kill, are sedated before being released in to a much larger enclosure. Money exchanges hands depending on the choice from the menu — the rare white lions being the prize at the top. Then they are hunted (if you can call it that) and killed.
This is a vile, cowardly and greedy practice.
‘You can judge a mans true character by the way he treats his fellow animals.’ Paul McCartney
The momentum behind the scenes is growing. Brent Stapelkamp, who monitors the lions at Hwange every day, commented to The Telegraph in a recent interview: “Cecil’s death has a silver lining. He is going to change the lion conservation world, thanks to the momentum this has brought. The world getting involved in the story.”
(For full article click here http://bit.ly/1Ju8CXJ)
Blood Lions is one of the first ‘big cat out of the bag’ documentaries. Revealing the truth about cub petting, volunteer recruitment, lion walking, canned hunting, trading and the new lion bone trade all of which are being justified under the guise of conservation, research and education, it is deeply unsettling viewing. It premiered in Durban this month.
Ngala, Fighting for Lions, is a further documentary in the making which needs financial support. Game of Thrones actor, Jerome Flynn, patron of the Global White Lion Trust, lends his support as narrator. The film explores the hunting industry as a whole and how losing our lions will damage our eco-system beyond repair. Lions are apex predators. Without them the survival of the rest of the species can be seriously damaged.
What can you do to make a difference?
Support Blood Lions by watching the film and sharing the trailer throughout social media.
Support Ngala, Fighting for Lions by donating to their Indigogo campaign:
Lets get our heads out of the proverbial sand.
