“Government officials like to go to those events. That’s why they are still allowed,” complained Jesús Fuentes, a director of Circo Fuentes Gasca, one of Mexico’s oldest circuses, during the protest that blocked traffic on several streets in the downtown core.
In September, Guadalajara city hall followed the earlier lead of Zapopan and banned animals from performing in circuses in the municipality.
Fuentes poured scorn on the local councilors, noting that Guadalajara last year earmarked 840,000 pesos from its budget for students wanting to learn bullfighting techniques.
Fuentes said in defiance of the new regulations, he is prepared to host bullfights in his circus rings and kill bulls, as well as the charro roping practice of jaripeo, which he said can sometimes injure horses.
“Of course they will give us permission to kill animals,” he said with a large tint of irony.
According to the Frente de Lucha por la Defensa del Circo Tradicional Mexicano, an organization dedicated to preserving circus traditions, around 40,000 families in Mexico are dependent on circuses for a living. The group says some 500 circus jobs have been lost in the past two months directly as a result of legislation in various states banning animal acts.
Private animal welfare advocates say they have many documented cases of circus animals being mistreated and have vowed to continue their campaigns in states where the practice is still permitted. Municipalities in 12 Mexican states now do not permit animal acts in circuses.
Most circuses vehemently deny that they treat their animals badly. During last week’s protest in Guadalajara, demonstrators placed a coffin outside the Justice building to highlight the case of “Invictus,” a bear that authorities seized from a circus in Merida, Yucatan in March after finding it in a sorry state. Unfortunately the bear died earlier this month while still undergoing rehabilitation. In an ironic twist, the protestors are now accusing authorities and politicians of “murdering” Invictus.