CHARLOTTE LAWS - DREAM AND ACHIEVE TOGETHER
|
|
|
CHARLOTTE LAWS - DREAM AND ACHIEVE TOGETHER |
|
|
Speech
to the Los Angeles City Council on behalf of the Elephants |
|
My name is Dr. Charlotte Laws. I am president of the
Directors of Animal Welfare (or DAW) program and a member of the Greater
Valley Glen Council. The DAWs urge you to close the elephant exhibit
permanently and to send Gita, Ruby and Billy to a sanctuary. I am dismayed by the vote of the joint committee last week,
but want to take this moment to thank Councilmember Rosendahl for his lone
ethical vote. A number of Neighborhood Councils plan to vote on
the elephant issue at their upcoming board meetings. I feel you should
listen to the councils and stakeholders in your districts before making a
rash decision. Everyone knows that elephants need space.
Confining these large and beautiful creatures in a 3.7 acre enclosure is
like trying to raise a child in a suitcase. It amounts to ongoing cruelty
and systematic abuse. What are we teaching our children when we take
them to visit unhappy elephants living in intolerable conditions? We
convey the wrong message. Elephants are not objects to be propped up on
display. They are beings with innate value, deserving of happiness. Los Angeles has a budget deficit of $270 million.
It is irresponsible to spend $39 million of money that we do not have in
this way. In addition, the proposed exhibit will become
defunct when Assemblyman Lloyd Levine’s elephant bill passes. The state
will order you to close the new facility. Please do the right thing for these deserving and
beautiful creatures. They are counting on you. And please do the right thing for Los Angeles taxpayers. We are likewise counting on you. |
