AR-News: New Orleans Times-Picayune lead editorial on cockfighting

[Political Animal]

Editorials


Louisiana's stigma 

Monday April 12, 2004

 

Louisiana lawmakers have an opportunity to erase a
blot on our state's reputation as well as its psyche
-- legalized cockfighting -- and they should take it. 

Only two states sanction this bloody pastime --
Louisiana and New Mexico. Others recognized it as
cruel and barbaric much earlier, with most outlawing
it in the 19th century. 



As the list of states that allow cockfighting shrinks,
the stigma attached to it can only grow. Cockfighting
doesn't only brutalize animals, it also does violence
to Louisiana's image. 

State legislators can remove that stigma by supporting
House Bill 681, sponsored by Rep. Karen Carter. The
comprehensive bill touches on all aspects of
cockfighting, making it illegal to promote and stage a
cockfight and also to participate in one, whether as a
bird handler or spectator. 

Even possessing fighting birds or the weapons used in
the fights -- sharp knives that are attached to the
roosters' feet -- would be illegal. 

Cockfighting apologists, who insist that the blood
sport is part of Louisiana's heritage and deserves to
be preserved, have persuaded legislators to kill
similar legislation in the past. 

But lawmakers shouldn't let them foist their will on
the rest of us. Legislators need to understand that
cockfighting advocates don't speak for the majority of
Louisiana residents. 

According to a poll of likely voters conducted last
month, 82 percent support a law to ban the practice,
with 71 percent saying they supported it strongly. The
opposition to cockfighting cut across demographic
lines. 

The poll was sponsored by the Humane Society of the
United States, an organization that's committed to
seeing the practice banned. But the fact that the poll
was paid for by an advocacy group doesn't make it
invalid. 

It's hardly surprising that Louisiana residents would
find roosters hacking each other to death as a form of
entertainment to be revolting. The notion that this is
a cherished part of Louisiana culture is far less
credible. 

http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/editorials/index.ssf?/base/news-1/1081753099194270.xml


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