| *
Update from the Field
Last week, the last four bull buffalo that chose to
remain on the "wrong" side of Yellowstone
National Park's border - the Montana side - were
forced back into the Park by Montana Department of Livestock
(DOL) agents. Now, all the buffalo are inside
the Park. If it weren't such a prison for them,
a place they are forced to be, the only place the last
wild buffalo are allowed to be, we could say they were
safe. Safety, however, is a relative term.
For now, at least until the fall migration begins, the
country's last wild buffalo will be left in relative
peace. They will be visited and admired and photographed
by millions of park visitors.
The Buffalo Field Campaign is enjoying this quiet time
and we now turn our attention from the field to the
policy arena and to the millions of countrymen and women
who have yet to hear what the last wild buffalo suffer
at the demands of livestock industry interests.
BFC will be in the park to let the people know why the
buffalo they see are wearing ugly, multi-colored radio
collars; we will tell them about the vaginal transmitters
the females are forced to endure; we will explain to
them what the unnatural black stripes and glued on number-tags
mean; we will tell them all that we have witnessed over
the course of the last nine months, and what will continue
to happen until we all raise our voices in protest and
demand that it cease.
The country's last wild buffalo endure tremendous and
needless human-induced suffering throughout the course
of the Fall, Winter and Spring. We who witness
their suffering share it.
The buffalo also make the most out of living when they
are left to living. So, if there's any one lesson
we continue to learn from them it seems to be that in
the face of oppression, the buffalo do endure.
In non-violence and with dignity and strength, they
resist, persist, persevere. They are the very
best teachers we have ever had. How can the buffalo
ever be thanked? We can honor and respect them
by creating a world in which they roam unmolested.
We can thank them by becoming a world, as eight-year
old buffalo warrior Japhy says, in which "babies
play peacefully in the sage...[and] Mother Buffalo calve
on their traditional calving grounds!"
Please read on to learn how, together, we can make this
a reality.
For the Last Wild Buffalo,
~Stephany
P.S. Our prayers and thoughts go out to Katie,
who lost her dog Puggles last week in a tragic accident.
That little guy will be missed!
------------------------------
Montanans: Enter Raffle to Win a Harley Davidson!
Buffalo Field Campaign and the Montana Medics Collective
are teaming up
for a summer fund raiser!
We have been donated a vintage 1975 Harley -Davidson
Electraglide to raffle off. This bike has been a Missoula
icon for many years and is absolutely gorgeous and in
perfect running condition. We are selling 2000 tickets
only, at $10.00 per ticket, so your odds of winning
will never be less than 1/2000. We also have a number
of consolation prizes.
All proceeds will be split between the two groups, so
BFC can go on with saving Yellowstone's last wild bison,
and MMC can continue providing free health care to activists
on the front lines of social and environmental justice
campaigns, and creating a sustainable medical model
for a better world.
The bike will be featured around town this summer at
various events, or you can call Darla at 728-6454 to
see it, or to buy tickets.
Check out photos on BFC's web site: http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org.
Get your tickets now, as they are already going fast!
The final drawing will be at the Missoula Hempfest,
Sept 10. You do not need to be present to win.
For more information contact Darla at mtmedics@wildrockies.org.
------------------------------
* Support the Yellowstone Buffalo Preservation
Act
Has your House Representative signed on to H.R. 2428,
the Yellowstone Buffalo Preservation Act?
There are at least four good reasons why they should
do so immediately:
1. Buffalo will be allowed to
roam on national forest lands adjacent to Yellowstone,
lands where they are currently targets of hazing, capture
and slaughter.
2. The bill gives the National
Park Service sole jurisdiction over buffalo inside Yellowstone
National Park. Currently, the DOL has the authority
to continue to haze buffalo within the borders of Yellowstone's
western edge using helicopters and horses.
3. The bill will shut down and
dismantle the Stephens Creek bison trap located within
the borders of Yellowstone National Park near Gardiner,
Montana.
4. It requires the National Park
Service and the National Forest Service to acquire additional
habitat for wild buffalo.
Take Action for the Buffalo Today!
Please contact your House Representative and urge him/her
to become a champion of America's last wild buffalo
by signing on to H.R. 2428, the Yellowstone Buffalo
Preservation Act. Write, call, email, and fax
them today. If your Representative happens to
be Hinchey or Bass, please thank them for taking the
courageous and truly patriotic initiative to introduce
this critical legislation.
To contact your House Representatives visit:
http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/actnow/politicians.html.
To learn more about H.R. 2428 visit:
http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/legislative/buffalopreservation.html
THANK YOU FOR HELPING TO PROTECT AMERICA'S LAST WILD
BUFFALO!
------------------------------
* Calls to the Governor are Working!
Good news! Your calls to Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer
are working. We are hearing from his office, and
he is listening. We must keep the pressure on.
Montana resident or not, your calls are critical and
they really are making a difference.
Please continue to make Governor Schweitzer's phone
ring off the hook for the buffalo! Tell him that
Montana's current treatment of buffalo is shameful and
that the state must save face and stop the harassment,
slaughter and domestication of the country's last wild
buffalo. Urge him to secure substantial habitat
within Montana where buffalo can roam freely, and tell
him to strip the Department of Livestock of any wild
buffalo management authority. Tell him that a
Montana with wild and free buffalo is a Montana worth
celebrating, and one you want to live in or visit!
Call Governor Brian Schweitzer by dialing 406-444-3111
today!
------------------------------
* BFC West & East Coast Road Shows
Would you like to bring the Buffalo Field Campaign to
your neighborhood?
We will soon be hitting the road, heading to the West
Coast and then the East Coast for our annual road shows.
This is a chance to show people our footage from the
field, discuss the issue, and inspire folks to take
action to protect this sacred herd.
If you would like to bring the buffalo's story to your
community, or know anyone who does, and can help us
organize a video presentation, fund-raiser, festival,
tabling event, or any outreach opportunity please contact
bfc-media@wildrockies.org.
------------------------------
* Last Words
Buffalo Tracks
Dark clouds sweep over broad prairie Below
All is quiet
No Life
But three Indian spirits
Sit on their ponies near an old buffalo wallow
They look out over a wide expanse
Gone are the buffalloes that wallowed here
Only their bones
Leave their spirit prints
Gone are the teepees
That once rested here
Only the wind
Across the prairie
~ J.Glenn Evans
Top
of Page
|
