Go on the record with your personal experiences of bullfighting

[Guest guest]

Dear Friends:Our organization, the CRAC (Radically Anti-Bullfighting Coalition http://www.anticorrida.com) is going to have a negociation round with the French government about bullfighting. Unfortunately, we do not expect to get the ban of bullfights now in France. But there is a hope to get some decisions about the restriction of bullfights, and, in particular, we hope that the access to bullfights will be prohibited to minors under 16.But we need to emphasize the harmful effects of cruel and violent spectacles on children. Written testimonies would be very useful for that purpose.We know that tourists commonly attend to bullfights by curiosity and are often shocked. Therefore, we have written a call for testimonies, to be widely forwarded in all countries.Feel free to forward this text below. The call for testimonies is available in English, French and Italian.Thank you very much is you can send it to your friends, to any animal mailing lists, to any animal militants.Thank you very much too if you can translate it in other languages. Franck Michel

___________________________

 

Go on the record with your personal experiences of bullfighting

 

 

Dear friends,

 

The defenders of bullfighting refuse to admit that their practice, in addition to inflicting atrocious flesh wounds to animals for twenty long minutes, can seriously harm the minds of children or even of unwitting adults oblivious to the spectacle_s actual content. Ever since the first appearance of bullfighting in 18th century Spain and its extension to towns in southwest France at the end of the 19th century, the _aficionados_ have always staunchly maintained before governing bodies and the media that bullfighting possesses only exemplary virtues.

 

There is a simple way to refute these arguments.

We have collected a number of oral testimonies, some on-the-spot during protest demonstrations at the rings, others during our information campaigns.

The time has come to solicit written testimonies.

 

So we are appealing to you now to send us your personal accounts:

--if you attended one or more bullfights as a minor, taken along by adults (family, friends...) and remember what you went through as painful or traumatic.

--if you attended a bullfight as an adult and have a painful recollection of the experience; this might be the case if you entered the bullring without knowing exactly what you were in for, if you were a tourist attending a fiesta for example.

 

You don't have to be able to write well; just describe your experience in your own words.

We request that your e-mail response be backed up by a posted letter either typed or handwritten, and signed in order that your testimony may be given all the consideration it deserves.

You should try to be as precise as possible concerning your age (for experiences during childhood or adolescence) or the year (if you were an adult), the exact location of the bullfight(s), and clearly indicate your complete name and address.

Your testimonies may be sent out over the Internet but your personal contact data will be withheld to protect your privacy. This information may, however, be provided as part of a group action aimed at political and legal officials or members of the media in order to prove that the testimonies are genuine.

 

We are aware of the effort involved in carrying out such a task, but every contribution helps move the debate forward.

 

Thank you in advance for your cooperation and don't hesitate to send this appeal on to others you know that might feel concerned !

 

Send your e-mail to: jeanpaul.richier

AND

Post your back-up letter to: Comité Radicalement Anti-Corrida

Guillassou

24110 - St Astier - FRANCE

 

Dr JP Richier, CRAC delegate for Ile-de-FranceRadically Anti-Bullfighting Coalitionhttp://www.anticorrida.com___________________________'>http://www.anticorrida.com___________________________

 

 

 

 

Corrida : appel à témoignages

 

 

 

Chers amis,

 

Les défenseurs de la corrida refusent d'admettre que leur pratique, outre qu'elle blesse atrocement les animaux dans leur chair durant vingt longues minutes, peut blesser gravement l'esprit des enfants, ou encore des adultes des adultes non avertis du contenu réel de ce spectacle. Depuis l'apparition de la corrida au cours du XVIIIème siècle en Espagne et son implantation dans des communes du Sud de la France à la fin du XIXème siècle, les "aficionados" ont toujours soutenu sans sourciller auprès des pouvoirs publics puis des médias que ce spectacle ne pouvait qu'avoir des vertus exemplaires et revigorantes.

 

Il y a une réponse simple à opposer : les témoignages.

Nous avons recueilli nombre de témoignages oraux, soit à chaud lors d'actions de protestation devant les arènes, soit à froid lors d'actions d'information.

A présent, le moment est venu de passer au stade des témoignages écrits.

 

Nous vous appelons ainsi à nous faire parvenir votre témoignage :

- si vous avez assisté à une ou plusieurs corridas étant mineur, entraîné par des adultes (parents ou entourage), et avez mal supporté ce spectacle.- si vous avez assisté à une corrida étant adulte et avez mal supporté ce spectacle ; ce peut notamment être le cas si vous avez pénétré dans une arène sans savoir exactement de quoi il s'agissait, par exemple comme touriste dans le cadre d'une féria.

 

Pas besoin de savoir bien écrire : il suffit d'écrire avec vos propres mots ce que vous avez vécu.

Nous demandons que votre réponse par mail soit doublée d'une réponse par courrier postal, tapée ou manuscrite mais signée, afin que votre témoignage ait le poids qu'il convient.

 

Il faut préciser dans la mesure du possible l'âge (pour les expériences remontant à l'enfance ou l'adolescence) ou l'année (pour les expériences vécues en tant qu'adulte) de l'expérience, le lieu de la ou des corridas, et bien entendu indiquer vos coordonnées complètes.

Des témoignages pourront être diffusés sur Internet, mais pas les coordonnées des personnes qui en sont à l'origine. Cependant, ces coordonnées pourront bien entendu être présentées collectivement à des hommes politiques, des hommes de loi, ou des représentants des médias, dans le cadre d'une action, pour attester de la véracité des témoignages.

 

Nous sommes conscient de l'effort que cette démarche représente, mais chaque témoignage peut faire avancer considérablement le débat.

 

Merci d'avance, et n'hésitez pas à faire circuler cet appel !

 

 

Réponse par mail à adresser à : jeanpaul.richier

(jeanpaul.richierATnoos.fr)ET

Réponse par courrier à adresser à : Comité Radicalement Anti Corrida Guillassou - 24110 St Astier

Dr JP Richier, délégué CRAC Ile-de-France

 

 

-----------------------

 

Cari amici,

I difensori della corrida non vogliono ammettere che colpire atrocemente gli animali di continuo e per oltre venti minuti, possa inoltre ferire l'animo sensibile dei bambini, ma anche degli adulti non perfettamente a conoscenza del reale contenuto di questi crudeli spettacoli . Da quando la corrida è apparsa per la prima volta in Spagna, nel corso del XVIII secolo e nei comuni limitrofi del sud della Francia intorno al XIX secolo, gli "aficionados" hanno sempre decantato le virtù positive di tali pratiche. Le testimonianze mostrano però il contrario. Abbiamo raccolto numerose testimonianze orali, sia a caldo, cioè durante le azioni di protesta davanti alle arene, sia a freddo e cioè durante le attività d'informazione ed è ora il momento di far conoscere tali espressioni di protesta anche per iscritto.

Siamo qui a chiedervi di farci pervenire le vostre testimonianze personali:

- Se avete assistito a una o più corrida da bambini e se ne conservate un ricordo negativo;

- Se avete assistito da adulti ad una corrida e se ne conservate un ricordo negativo;

- Se avete assistito casualmente ad una corrida, senza necessariamente sapere di cosa si trattasse, in qualità di turista;

Non è necessario saper scrivere correttamente, abbiamo semplicemente bisogno di conoscere quelle che sono state le emozioni che avete vissuto.Gradiremmo, oltre alla vostra email di risposta, una lettera firmata, per poter dar maggior peso alle vostre testimonianze.

Dovrete altresì precisare, dove possibile, l'età (per le esperienze relative all'adolescenza o all'infanzia) o l'anno (per le esperienze vissute da adulti) in cui è avvenuta l'esperienza, il luogo in cui si è tenuta la corrida ed indicare i vostri dati completi. Tali testimonianze potranno essere diffuse via Internet, ma in nessun modo diffonderemo i vostri dati personali; mentre potrebbero essere presentate collettivamente a istituzioni politiche, uomini di legge o ai mass-media nel quadro di azioni specifiche per attestare la veridicità delle testimonianze.

Siamo coscienti dello sforzo che tale richiesta comporta, ma abbiamo veramente bisogno delle vostre testimonianze reali per far avanzare la nostra protesta.Vi ringraziamo anticipatamente, ricordandovi di diffondere questo comunicato!

Per email:

jeanpaul.richier

(jeanpaul.richierATnoos.fr)

Per la corrispondenza cartacea:

Comité Radicalement Anti Corrida Guillassou - 24110 St Astier - FranceDr JP Richier, délégué CRAC Paris Ile-de-France

Comité Radicalement Anti Corridahttp://www.anticorrida.com