Dear Editor,
Randi Brockman is right on target in her denouncement of the circus. In addition to the cruelties perpetuated on animals used by the circus, there are very real risks to patrons as well.
Elephants used in Shrine Circuses have rampaged, causing injuries to circus-goers and killing handlers.
Last January, a trainer working for the Shrine Circus in Fort Wayne, Ind., was stomped to death as he loaded elephants into a trailer. In 2003, an elephant at the Shrine Circus in Muskegon, Mich., escaped from a tent and fled into a busy downtown area. In 2002, two elephants with the Shrine Circus in Dunn County, Wis., bolted out of a circus tent, scattering frightened circus-goers.
Elephants are not the only dangerous animals used by Shrine Circuses. A circus-goer attending the Shrine Circus in Evansville, Ind., last December was reportedly hospitalized after being bitten on the face by a chimpanzee.
A tiger that had been walked on a leash near children during Shrine Circuses killed two handlers. And a bear with the Shrine Circus in Grand Rapids, Mich., bit off the tip of a child’s finger.
The most simple and significant action anyone can take to protect themselves and avoid supporting animal cruelty is to not patronize the circus.
Jennifer O’Connor
Animals in Entertainment Campaigns Writer
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals

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