Over 100 million animals are killed each year by trophy hunters.

In case you don’t know what trophy hunting is, it is the killing of large animals for human recreation which then is displayed as an achievement. This barbaric sport has been around for hundreds of years and is slowly killing off innocent animals for the sake of bragging. Extinction is becoming more relevant as time goes on and trophy hunters are partly to blame.

Lions are at the top of the list for these hunters. Eighteen countries in Africa legalized lion hunting for trophies. Allowing people to hunt these animals is immoral and needs to be stopped. There needs to be laws put in place which protect and preserve the lion species. A century ago there were a little over 200,000 lions on the African continent, and now there are only 20,000. This is a barbaric sport endangering the lives of millions just so they can be placed on a mantel.

Some will argue that a few countries around the world place quotas on trophy hunting. It doesn’t matter if there are quotas because often they are much higher than they need to be. The real question is, why hunt in the first place? Better regulation needs to be implemented in order to ensure the preservation of these animals. All trophy hunting should be banned.

More people aren’t concerned about this issue because they think, in some African countries, it helps their economy. However, reports released by Ecolarge in 2012 stated: “Analysis of literature on the economics of trophy hunting reveals, however, that communities in the areas where hunting occurs derive very little benefit from this revenue.” Trophy hunting doesn’t benefit anyone, not even the hunters. It’s important we as college students take note of this injustice and formulate solutions.

This issue would make headlines if it was being done to humans. If a person was targeting a specific group or race of people, we would be in an uproar. Since we condemn acts of genocide, why do we not give animals the same respect?  

Trophy hunting has grown out of control. People are formulating groups and awards for those who kill the most animals, and the entire sport is sicking. Some people even argue trophy hunting isn’t an issue in American culture; however, the Ecolarge report reveals “the top five deadliest states for mountain lions are Idaho, Montana, Colorado, Utah and Arizona. Between 2005 and 2014, trophy hunters killed approximately 29,000 mountain lions in the U.S.; an estimated 2,700 more were killed in other countries and traded internationally over the last decade.” As you can see, this is a global issue we shouldn’t take lightly. It is time we bring this travesty out of the dark and force people to see the effects of their heinous actions.

The Earth is already at a very critical point, and we are continuing to destroy the most precious aspects of human life. What happens when we no longer have animals? Will we then stop and realize our flaws? By then, it will be too late to fix it. So let’s take a step forward and rectify this situation before we run out of time and animals.

Chantelle is a sophomore in Media.

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