LAST UPDATED: May 8th, 2015
(Columbus, Ohio) – The U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance (USSA) decries the most recent effort of the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) to ban hunting in Arizona.
On November 11, PETA sent a letter to the Governor of Arizona, Janet Napolitano, urging support of legislation that would ban hunting by anyone younger than 18.
PETA is attempting to exploit recent November 5 news coverage of a tragedy in which an eight year-old boy allegedly shot and killed his father, Vincent Romero, and Timothy Romans with a .22-caliber rifle. The organization claims that the violent act was fomented by a recent family prairie dog hunting trip.
PETA told Gov. Napolitano that hunting teaches “children to see others as nothing more than living targets.”
“PETA always uses the most distasteful tactics to make headlines. In this case it is exploiting a tragic situation to advance its anti-hunting agenda,” said USSA Executive Vice President Rick Story.
“There is no reason to believe that banning hunting for youth would have prevented this act”, Story said. “A ban on hunting for those under 18 will prohibit thousands of law abiding, responsible sportsmen and their children from engaging in a time honored tradition”, he said.
The U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance is a national association of sportsmen and sportsmen’s organizations that protects the rights of hunters, anglers and trappers in the courts, legislatures, at the ballot, in Congress and through public education programs. For more information about the U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance and its work, call (614) 888-4868 or visit its website, www.ussportsmen.org.
