Kendall Jones, the 19 year old Texas-based big game hunter, is not receiving praise from Facebook about her sport killing. Actually, quite the opposite. After a big campaign from FB members, the social media giant has taken down photos of her African big game kills, including rhinos, elephants, lions, tigers and leopards from her page.
The beauty of the African lion, one of the animals killed by big game hunter Kendall Jones
Facebook released a statement today saying that it removes, “reported content that promotes poaching of endangered species, the sale of animals for organized fight or content that includes extreme acts of animal abuse.”
Pro-hunting groups claim that this type of an expensive game hunt provides dollars to impoverished areas, and help to increase awareness of endangered species and direct money to conservation groups. But in fact, most of these are “canned” hunts in which the animals have no place to escape and have been reared by humans all their lives, whom they trust. And why can’t the hunters’ dollars go straight to helping these animals instead of hurting them? I strongly disagree with this, as hunters have severely hurt the numbers of these endangered species in Africa. Several species such as the Tasmanian tiger, the Atlas bear and the passenger pigeon were all wiped out due to hunting. As a true animal lover and someone who believes in conservationism, I think it best to support eco-tourism and see these majestic creatures in their natural habitats-alive-while also helping to create awareness by using the power of voice and action, not weapons. And by spotlighting wildlife welfare organizations dedicated to preserving these animals. What do you think?
