| *
Update from the Field
By the time the Stephens Creek capture facility, located
one mile inside Yellowstone National Park, is empty
nearly 1,000 sacred buffalo will be dead. We all bear
a share of responsibility for this because our federal
tax dollars are footing the bill. With buffalo displayed
proudly on their badges, Park Rangers are doing the
buffalo in, as of this writing their share of the slaughter
is 823 and counting.
Outside the Park, more tolerance and more habitat could
exist on lands owned by the Church
Universal and Triumphant (CUT). Instead the church
insists on grazing less than 200 cows on its land and
as a result, by winter's end, more than 1,000 buffalo
will die. Another ironic twist is that the U.S. Department
of Homeland Security continues to escort these animals
to slaughterhouses. Aren't they supposed to be safeguarding
us against terrorist attacks?
All of this could be avoided if the CUT would remove
their cattle or come up with a figure for what it would
cost to allow buffalo on their land. Working in partnership,
the government and non-profit community could easily
raise these funds. Instead, CUT disrespects the religious
beliefs of all the tribes who regard these buffalo as
sacred relatives. In 1997 the CUT ordered Lakota elder
and BFC co-founder Rosalie Little Thunder arrested for
saying a prayer for 14 Buffalo shot on their land. How
can CUT's religion supersede that of all the First Nations
of this continent?
Another glaring injustice is the fact that the Montana
Department of Livestock (DOL), whose agents have no
training in wildlife management, retains ultimate authority
concerning the fate of Yellowstone buffalo. Focused
on protecting the economic interests of Montana's livestock
industry, the DOL has the ultimate conflict of interest
when it comes to managing buffalo. Having only been
involved in a few operations this year, the DOL has
nonetheless proven how ill-fitted they are for the job.
In West Yellowstone they canceled the hunt to haze buffalo
onto the ice of Hebgen Lake and 12 broke through, two
drowned, and ten endured over three hours in the frozen
waters. BFC volunteers who offered to help were threatened
with arrest. After doing nothing but watch for an hour
and a half, the DOL agents finally attempted to pull
the buffalo from the lake, though they still refused
to allow BFC volunteers to help.
Valentines day brought the next DOL involvement. Due
to Montana's new hunt, the agency has had to take a
back seat while Park Service agents slaughtered hundreds
of buffalo. But on Tuesday our local DOL agent finally
found a way to kill. The agent shot a bull buffalo after
deeming him "unhazeable," and once again BFC's
offer of help was rejected. A week before two BFC volunteers
on foot had shepherded nine bull buffalo safely out
of the same field. Angry, aggressive, harsh treatment
of wild buffalo will always result in problems, and
this being standard procedure for the DOL, we should
continue to expect trouble. Ironically if any of these
agencies were to treat their horses, cows, dogs, or
cats in any of the abusive ways they reserve for the
the buffalo, they would be fined, have their animal
confiscated and possibly spend time in jail. But for
some reason buffalo don't enjoy the same protection
as other animals, wild or domestic.
This year the Nez Perce have asserted their treaty rights
and asked BFC to document their hunt. We have also participated
in ceremony with five distinct, sovereign nations for
the buffalo. The Native American voice is growing louder
and change is on the way, those who don't want the change
had better get out of the way.
With the Buffalo,
Mike Mease
------------------------------
* Contact these Decision-Makers
What do we do when faced with such enormous and senseless
wild buffalo slaughter? Speak up! Let our voices be
heard by the people who are responsible. Please take
the time to write, call, fax and in any way contact
the entities listed below. Your members of Congress
must also hear from you on this issue, and you should
be sure to let them know that Yellowstone is being unresponsive
to the will of the American people. THANK YOU for taking
action for the buffalo - it is so important because
if we don't, who will?
Yellowstone National Park
Superintendent Suzanne Lewis
PO Box 168, Yellowstone National Park, WY 82190
(307) 344-2002
Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer
State Capitol, Helena, MT 59620-0801
(406)444-3111
Church Universal & Triumphant (CUT)
P.O. Box 5000, Gardiner, Montana 59030-5000
Phone (in US): 800-245-5445 * Phone (out of US): 406-848-9500
Fax (in US) 800-221-8307 * Fax (out of US) 406-848-9555
Web: http://www.tsl.org/ContactUs.asp
US Representatives
The Honorable _____________
United States House of Representatives, Washington,
DC 20510
http://www.house.gov/writerep/
US Senators
The Honorable _____________
United States Senate, Washington, DC 20515
http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
------------------------------
* New Deadline for Quarantine Comments, Feb.
27
If you've already sent in your comments, you are ahead
of the game! Thank you! If you didn't get the chance,
that's ok - there's still time.
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks (FWP) and the Animal
and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) have once
again extended the deadline for public comments on their
bison quarantine feasibility study. Comments are now
due Monday, February 27, 2006.
One hundred wild bison calves are currently being held
within the quarantine facility. Their mothers and many
of their family members have been sent to slaughter.
These wild calves will be held in captivity for four
years where they will be used in scientific experiment,
forced breeding programs, and eventually more than half
will be slaughtered. Please be a voice against this
becoming the future for more wild baby buffalo! Here's
what bison quarantine looks like: http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/media/videoaudio/quarantine042305.mov
Please send your comments today! For contact and general
information please visit http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/actnow/actionalerts.html#bisonquarantine.
Contact Josh at bfc-advocate@wildrockies.org
with questions and please send him a copy of your comments.
Thanks!
------------------------------
* Last Words
"We have a relationship with the buffalo. It sustains
us. We owe not only the Buffalo but the Earth quite
a bit. We have ceremonies that are very mindful of taking
care of the spirit of the buffalo. We don't believe
that life begins at birth and ends at death, but our
spirit begins again and again. The spirit of the buffalo
must be tended to.
With hundreds and hundreds of our relatives going to
slaughter, it's very disturbing because their spirits
are not tended to, and they are trapped and cannot live
again. When we send our relatives to slaughter for no
good reason we have to at least help to remind those
human beings that make decisions this is careless, it
is a very careless thing to do…. "
~ Rosalie Little Thunder, Lakota Elder & co-founder
of Buffalo Field Campaign
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