Cecil the Lion (and how being mad at his murder does not mean I don’t think black lives matter).
Unless you have been unplugged from all electronics the past week, you already know about the tragedy of Cecil the Lion’s murder by a Minnesota dentist, Walter Palmer.
Trophy hunting is near the top of my list of horrible things people still do for some dumb reason. I will never understand the mind of a person who wants to kill the most magnificent creatures on this earth just so they can put their body parts up on a wall. It is the makings of a serial killer to have the capacity to see a beautiful living thing and have your first thought be “I want to murder that being and put it’s head in my house”.
I was happy to see the amount of people upset at this and took a moment to really appreciate how far we have come that so many are up in arms about Cecil. Then a few moments passed, and the other voices online, in the news, and in person started flooding in. Comments about “Cecil the Pig”, about the companion animal euthanasia problems, that more people are upset about a lion than the most recent black person to be killed by a cop. And I got frustrated. Really, really frustrated.
There are THOUSANDS of problems with our society and our world. THOUSANDS. If people are up in arms about an incident, that doesn’t mean the general population isn’t upset about other things, too. It means their focus is on the tragedy that just occurred. Yes, I am livid that millions dogs and cats are euthanized each day in this country. I am livid that billions of farm animals are tortured their entire lives just to be slaughtered for meat. I am livid that so many cops abuse their power and are killing innocent people every day. But that doesn’t mean I am not allowed to be pissed that a trophy hunter killed a vital animal in a nature preserve.
Some people are civil rights activists. Some are animal rights activists. Some people aren’t activists, per se, but do have morals and emotions, and get upset when an unnecessary tragedy happens. This does not necessarily mean that a person dedicating their life to animal rights doesn’t care about people (or the other way around). Or that someone who normally isn’t push for a better world in some capacity on social media doesn’t care. I cried tears of anger when I heard about Cecil the Lion. I also cried tears of anger after watching the video of Sandra Bland. I didn’t post about either on my Facebook page. Does that mean I don’t care about either living being that lost their life in a horrendous way? No.
So please don’t knock someone for standing up for a positive change in this world. If we all focused on those one or two issues we are personally passionate about and demanded positive change, this world would be an amazing place. So focus on your one or two issues – and I’ll focus on mine… And I look forward to a day where all lives truly matter and this wonderful earth of ours is a happy, healthy place.
Jenna Riedi 
So very very well put, Jenna. Cecil was a gorgeous, unique lion. It is so sad to think what may happen to all the cubs. They could all be killed by the next lion to take over the pride. So sad. I also read/heard somewhere that Cecil was lured off protected land so that Palmer could shoot him with his crossbow. Makes me sick. I hope they didn’t let him keep the murdered lion for his trophy wall.
Your passion is palpable Jenna, and your message is on target. I sense a culture of finger pointing and criticism infesting our society at an alarming rate that it does get infuriating when a statement made from concern and passion gets twisted and questioned from left field. You said it clearly…just because we focus on one tragedy doesn’t mean we have forgotten, dropped or dismissed all the other tragedies that have happened. Keep your passion, keep your commitments to a better world, and don’t lose faith in the overall possibility for this world. Carry the torch!!
Very well put Jenna. It’s good to have a balanced view point on this issue which you especially do. Too many times the lens get’s narrowly focused on this kind of travesty and it takes the rest of us to remind others not to forget the human cost as well.