Urge Officials to Stop Bull-Torture Festival

PETA

BACKGROUND

Despite worldwide condemnation of the killing of bulls for “entertainment,” the Toro de la Vega continues to take place every September in Tordesillas, Spain. During this “festival,” a lone bull is harassed and chased through the streets and into a field, where men on foot and horseback wield lances. The terrified and confused animal is tortured and repeatedly stabbed until he falls to the ground, crippled and dying. His testicles are often cut off while he is still alive. The person who ultimately kills the bull is awarded a ceremonial spear and a medal by the Tordesillas City Council. Last year, the bull—named Afligido, which is Spanish for “sorrowful”—eventually died after being stabbed in the head with a screwdriver.

Tradition is no excuse for cruelty. Please write to the regional Ministry of Culture and Tourism, the mayor of Tordesillas, and the Tordesillas Tourism Office and urge officials to bring a permanent end to this cruel and sadistic “celebration.”


WHOM TO CONTACT
Please click and send polite comments to:

Ms. Alicia García Rodríguez
Counselor
Ministry of Culture and Tourism,Castile and León
lophermt@jcyl.es

Tordesillas Mayor Maria Milagros Zarzuelo Capellan and the Tordesillas Tourism Office
http://www.tordesillas.net/webs/inicio.php?cont=1&id=62

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SAMPLE LETTER

To Whom It Concerns,

I am shocked to learn of your annual Toro de la Vega event in which a bull is chased, stabbed, mutilated, and, after enduring prolonged agony and certain terror, is killed. This event is promoted as a cultural tradition, a celebration of your heritage and spirit, but your mitigating words and euphemistic descriptions cannot conceal the inherently barbaric nature of this event. Any celebration built on a foundation of extreme animal cruelty, exploitation, and suffering cannot be justified; condemning bulls, or any other animals, to a torturous ceremony for mere entertainment is indefensible. Commemorating your cultural history is admirable, yet subjecting an innocent creature to such a primitive ritual only demonstrates yours as an uncivilized society.

Animals, as humans, are sentient creatures, capable of emotion, thought, and pain; when you support the exploitation of them, you only promote indifference and establish that you are unsympathetic to suffering. Furthermore, the global community will certainly recognize and scoff at your shameless attempts of justification and will refuse to financially contribute to such an archaic demonstration of savagery . Indeed, until you ceases the Toro de la Vega in favor of a celebration that embraces compassion and respect towards all living beings, I will necessarily maintain the only ethical decision is to promote a boycott of your country and your country’s commerce.

Please choose compassion and empathy and permanently ban the Toro de la Vega and any other rituals that unethically and unnecessarily inflict suffering and pain on animals.

I know your time is limited, and I thank you for your attention to this urgent issue.

NAME

this festival of agony, death and sorrow.
should be a thing of only the past.
not today or tomorrow.

Karen Lyons Kalmenson