| People have very different attitudes to hunting and intervention in wildlife. Less than 20% of the population will either take part in such activities (hunters) or actively oppose them (anti-hunters). The rest will simply have their own views that either support or look down at hunting but they will still be non hunters.
Now let’s try to find out why some people oppose hunting and why they want to get their message across. The following are some reasons behind the anti-hunting attitude:
1. Hunting interferes with the natural balance
This is one of the intellectual arguments against hunting. Animals are killed by their natural predators. But a human hand can upset the energy flow and the food chains.
2. Right to life
We all are born with this right, humans and animals. It’s not a religious viewpoint but a matter of principle. Hunting goes against this basic right and so some find it an indefensible practice.
3. Moral view
This is quite similar to the ‘right to life’ argument except it focuses more on the hunter and not the hunted. The common held belief is that hunters are cruel people with no regard to the suffering of other living beings. Killing for pleasure, for recreation is seen as a morally wrong thing to do.
4. Denying resources for other people
Wildlife is a natural resource which should be shared by all. So a hunter is thought to be depriving this resource to others when he kills. Some vocal anti-hunters say that hunting creates a situation where the human (whether hunter or not) is regarded as the enemy by wild animals.
5. There are alternatives
There are some groups who say that wildlife can be left alone when there are livestock farms with animals grown for food and other domestic purposes.
roups like the American Hunt Saboteurs Association and the Humane Society of the United States (SHUS), which is the largest anti-hunting and animal rights organization in America, do their best to make people aware of animal issues. Their activities range from advocating for animal-friendly public policies to supporting laws that remove cruelty to animals and mobilizing to enforce exiting laws. Their websites focus on the cruelty caused to animals by sport hunting and other such activities. They organize activities to spread their message and to draw more people to their cause. Associations like these get generous donations from people who oppose hunting and who want to do something about it.
|
