Did you know that elephants will attempt to hide their tusks when humans are watching them? Per Craig Millar, who is head of security for the Big Life Foundation in Kenya, elephants do this because they understand the value of their own tusks. (The Ivory Game) African elephants are on the verge of extinction due to the rising number of deaths caused by poachers killing them for their ivory. A documentary released in 2016, called The Ivory Game, directed by both Kief Davidson, and Richard Ladkani help shine light on this dilemma; seeking support to end it once and for all. Regardless of already knowing the cost of ivory had on elephants, The Ivory Game, successfully broadened my horizon on the impact this trafficking trade is having on the existence …show more content…
The Chinese government distributes around five tons of ivory each year to markets whose demands are much higher, therefore leading to the illegal marketing of ivory. Furthermore, Hong Kong’s government system was also brought into the light, thanks to an investigative journalist who appeared in The Ivory Game, by the name of Hongxiang Huang. While there, he spoke to an ivory dealer that explained the process of selling illegal ivory through a flawed government system. The ivory that he sales is considered legal, because he registered it without specifying an exact amount when it was outlawed, thus he can fill his inventory with illegal ivory allowing him to sale it with no repercussions. If he can get away with selling ivory through this process, how many other people are using the same flawed system to sale theirs? When Hongxiang Huang visited a local village in Vietnam, he once again proved the system is broken by learning that ivory is transported across the border to China by bribing the police on both sides. In other words, they can use a small fraction of their earnings to pay off law enforcement to continue trafficking the ivory. If the government can’t fix these defective systems first, then there will be no hope for saving the African …show more content…
The directors did a terrific job of integrating these points into the documentary, not to mention, exposing the corrupt businesses and illegal smugglers. In addition, I now have a better understanding why people are involved with the ivory trade. After watching this film, I just can’t wrap my head around why human beings value an item that is stolen from another living being more than the life of that creature itself. I now see the life of these creatures through a new perspective, and I for one, will never purchase an item that contains any traces of ivory in it. Hopefully, this film can impact others the way it has successfully impacted me. If not, we will be losing a distinct creature from the animal kingdom. The world needs to come together now to defend these animals before it’s too late, or these precious mammals will continue to be slaughtered across
The most effective piece of this documentary, however, was neither the structure of the film nor the specific questions that one is forced to answer regarding the ethical treatment of these killer whales, but the overall questions of whether or not these corporations should be allowed to continue their cycle of abuse toward the animals and whether or not we, as patrons, should encourage their behavior by giving them a monetary profit every day, every month, and every year. Ignorance is forgivable, but with the knowledge given in this documentary: the final two questions raised should be able to answer themselves.
They managed to present reliable information to help them persuade the viewers into seeing all the horrible facts that are in the ivory trade such as elephants hiding their own tusks to seem less valuable. The techniques they used in order to persuade people with pathos was just as outstanding as the logos side, they chose excellent music to convey the emotions they wanted the viewers to feel. The ethos technique was the only persuasion technique that lacked at effectively presenting their message, the people didn’t seem very credible and gave the image that they knew too much about the topic. Other than the ethos technique lacking the movie was effective at displaying what they were trying to change and bring awareness
In chapter 6 Bissinger covers Ivory as a contradiction. Ivory is a boy who looks to relieve himself both through spiritual thinking and the physical aggression on the field. Ivory fond of football he does identify himself by it. Ivory had committed himself to god and spending most of his time as a young minister with the community church. This new commitment makes it strange with Ivory’s other passion for the hard work on the field and on games days.
A documentary is an informative film that aims to position readers to accept one version of the events or topics expressed. All documentaries posses the ability biased and present an altered version of reality to persuade audience positioning. ‘Blackfish’ is a captivating and inspired documentary released in 2013 concerning the inhumane captivity and domestication of Orcas at SeaWorld for pecuniary advantage. The film, directed by Gabriella Cowperthwaite positions viewers to adopt a dominant reading position on the topic of whale subjugation. The documentary utilises techniques such as expert verification, emotive language and the humanisation of whales to position dominant viewers to accept the ideology that captivity is deleterious
Killing animals to collect their horns, tusks and teeth is a common activity. Hunters firstly kill the animals with shotguns or snipers, and then they cut the animals into pieces to take the parts that they want to keep as souvenirs. Africa is usually the chosen “playground” because it has a wide range of animal species and lots of endemic animals. For some people, trophy hunting is a sport, and for others, it’s a job to make a living. However, trophy hunting jeopardizes animals and puts the endangered animals in a risk of extinction, and therefore it shouldn’t be allowed.
Wildlife conservationists are constantly working to supervise the rivers, forest, and other natural resources of Africa in order to preserve and protect them through prudent management. In Kenya, laws against trophy hunting has assisted these conservationists in maintaining wildlife populations. However, park rangers face a huge battle against the illegal poaching of these rare trophy animals, such as lions and elephants. In Asia, the demand for ivory continues to surge, despite the long-time ban on its international trade. The demand is so high that the Tanzanian government has developed plans to construct a commercial highway through the Serengeti in order to more efficiently trade goods with Asia (“The Need for Serengeti Watch”). However, the highway will also provide a faster route to the coast for ivory smugglers. The controversy surrounding the highway and its positive or negative effects on the economy, Tanzania as a whole, and the Serengeti is countless. Despite the debate over its benefits and...
“Many airlines now ban shipments of African “Big Five wildlife trophies. Celebrities around the world, as well as the media, are condemning the illegal killing of animals for sport. The United Nations has also spoken out in a historic resolution on wildlife trafficking by the U.N. General Assembly that “strongly encouraged governments to commit to targeted actions to eradicate supply, transit and demand for illegal wildlife products” (Source 4). Countries, media, and celebrities are now discouraging the illegal killing of large game and urges the governments of many countries to enact laws to stop the black market distribution of these predators. It is important to prohibit illegal trophies and to enforce these laws with punishments and fines to remove species from the endangered species list and stop extinctions. Stricter laws and regulations can protect and save entire species from ceasing to exist. “Just months after the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History accepted a $20 million donation from big-game hunter Kenneth Behring, the Institution sought a FWS permit to import the trophy remains of two endangered wild sheep that Behring shot in Central Asia…After a storm of ugly publicity, the Smithsonian abandoned the permit application” (Source 1). The case of the Smithsonian Museum attempting to import two endangered sheep is just one
There’s another catch to trophy hunting: it is extremely expensive. Permits for trophy hunting usually cost thousands of dollars, which leads to the idea that killing animals can actually help conservation. This concept might seem ridiculous at first, but trophy-hunting permits bring in a plethora of money. For instance, the so-called “ten-day ‘elephant package’ could cost… 36,000 [dollars]” (learnenglish). Even if you merely wish to watch the hunt, you are obliged to pay 3,800 dollars (abcnews). The prices are strikingly high, meaning that so is the revenue. South Africa alone brings in more than 744 million dollars every single year, making it its “most profitable form of commercial land use” (learnenglish). This enormous amount of money can not only be used to aid the many third world countries in Africa, but also with conservation. Many argue that by killing wild game during hunting, it causes some species to go extinct. However, strong economic incentive has motivated landowners to expand their territories, reintroduce species, and take care of the animals in general, which would indicate the opposite: more animals are safe. One might even conclude that the world is saving animals, by killing
How does the documentary contradict, support, and clarify, etc. your understanding of contemporary African culture, history and politics?
The second half of the 20th century has seen the continent of Africa in continuous turmoil. Civil wars, the AIDS epidemic, deforestation, and desertification are just a few of the problems facing Africa. A more recent threat to this ancient and fragile environment has emerged and is quickly gaining strength at devouring life – the bush meat trade. “Bush meat” refers to the smoked carcasses of various wild, and often endangered species that are sold illegally at rural markets of undeveloped countries and even at ethnic markets in developed nations. The meat of gorillas, chimpanzees, and elephants are considered delicacies and the demand for these endangered species is increasingly high. Countries at the center of this crisis are Botswana, Mozambique, Kenya, Zimbabwe, the Congo, Cameroon, Zambia, Malawi, and Tanzania. Bush meat plays a crucial socio-economic role to many in Africa, and as such epitomizes the need to balance protection against such factors as poverty, health, and food security. Certain key issues are necessary to understand the bush meat trade:
Elephants are an endangered species and they should not be killed for their ivory or they will become extinct. In the article The Poaching Problem the author writes” elephant populations have declined to dangerously low levels.” At the rate that poachers are killing these innocent animal the entire species of elephants will be extinct in the year 2030! That is only twenty five years, I know that does not seem like a long time but it is going to go by fast and every one will regret killing all those poor innocent gentle creatures. In case study 483 they author writes “ During the 1970s and 1980s elephant poaching had included about 1.3 million elephants killed for their tusks.” It is hard to distinguish between legal and illegal ivory so it is sold easily.
Review Main Points-Animal cruelty continues to be a problem, but we as individuals can make a difference by becoming aware and ultimately involved.
The African elephant’s range has declined by over 50 percent since 1979 – and their populations are breaking up
According to the passage “It was a global statement to arouse awareness of the scourge of poaching which had seen Kenya’s elephant population dwindle from 65,000in 1979 to 17,000in 1989. As a result new wildlife agency was made called the Kenya Wildlife Service, which was set up by the British elite unit, the SAS, to fight the poaching menace. For two decades Kenya Wildlife Service was a success. But not anymore, and the gory story of poaching has spilled well over Kenya’s borders. Exactly twenty two years later, Moi’s successor, Mwai Kibaki repeated the same feat by torching three hundred thirty five ivory tusks and more than 40,000 trinkets worth fifteen million dollars.”(Kabukuru
Over the years, elephant populations have drastically declined. This is due to human encroachment on their habitat and poaching. Demand for ivory has increased the number of poaching kills in Africa. In 1988, Congress passed the African Elephant Conservation Act, which placed a ban against illegal ivory imports and authorizes government funding for elephant field conservation projects. Although some African countries have initiated African elephant conservation programs, many do not have the sufficient resources to properly manage, conserve and protect their elephant’s populations.