As an avid animal lover, I tried my best to let be a trending story about a Kentucky woman’s slaughter of a South African Giraffe and the subsequent fallout. Of course, I couldn’t.
But I couldn’t because in the story are other stories which still persist on the African continent which are hardly any different than that which existed when our people were stripped away and sent to the western world as human chattel.
The story involves a Kentucky woman Tess Thompson Talley a big game hunter who posted to her social media account, her celebration of her ]kill] of a fully grown Giraffe.
On her Facebook page, Thompson-Talley wrote,“Prayers for my once in a lifetime dream hunt came true today! Spotted this rare black giraffe bull and stalked him for quite a while. I knew it was the one. He was over 18 years old, 4000 lbs. and was blessed to be able to get 2000 lbs. of meat from him.”\
Many people including celebrities have come out strongly against Talley. One celebrity wrote on Twitter quote,“What’s 16 feet tall and has a c**t on the back of its neck?” Actress Debra Messing wrote: “Tess Thompson Talley from Nippa, Kentucky is a disgusting, vile, amoral, heartless, selfish murderer.”
Look, every human-being is vested with the ability to differentiate between wrong and right and so I am constrained from disagreeing with those who shoot verbal darts at Thompson-Talley. After all, there is a certain majesty and awe in all of these wonderful creatures, it takes a special kind of retardation to kill one of these majestic creatures just to fulfill a bloodlust.
THE REAL ISSUE
Those who would destroy our eco-system, and by extension our planet deserve every bit of condemnation that they receive. Nevertheless, the larger question ought to be, why is Trophy hunting legal in South Africa, Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe?
In 2015 there was another uproar when Walter Palmer, a Minnesota dentist was raked over the coals for slaughtering Cecil the Lion. On this occasion as well, Palmer was well within what Zimbabwe’s laws allowed.
Eric and Donald Trump Jr the two sons of US President Donald Trump have also caught flack in 2015 when photos surfaced of them posing with a dead elephant and other animals several years earlier.
In as much as animal lovers are justified in their wrath against the mindless slaughter of these innocent animals, the real anger must and should be directed at these African Nations.
The fundamental issues which existed in the 15th century which allowed the enslavement of people and their ultimate debasement which reduced them to chattel are clearly still existent on the African continent today.
Set aside any protestations about the need to thin out certain species of animals on the continent. The fact that foreigners are allowed to visit any African nation and be allowed to degrade its natural resources should be cause for condemnation of the corrupt leadership which exist in these countries.
Over the last four hundred years, Europeans have plundered, raped and pillaged the rich and varied resources which were abundant and in many cases unique to the African continent. Not only have Europeans pillaged the natural resources they have also destroyed and laid destitute the human resources. As a consequence, the entire continent of Africa is now exposed to rampant famines, drought, massive outbreaks of disease and is essentially a basket case when considered against most of the other continents.
In many parts of the continent, including South Africa, and more so in Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe the only thing left other than the impoverished people, are the precious animals which have managed to survive the murderous onslaught of Europeans and Americans.
Conventional wisdom would suggest that these precious animals would be protected at all cost and a tourism product developed which includes the showcasing of these majestic animals in their natural habits where possible.
Shockingly, this crop of African leaders is no better than what obtained four hundred years ago when Africans aided and abetted the sale and enslavement, murder and other abuse of their fellow men and the resultant genocide which has been waged on the continent for over four centuries.