@suzanagartner
In April 2025, Washington State made history by passing Senate Bill 5065, banning the use of wild animals in traveling circuses. It joins a growing list of states—New Jersey, California, Hawaii, Colorado, Maryland, and Massachusetts—that have taken a stand against animal cruelty disguised as entertainment. Major cities like San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Portland have already passed local bans, and the momentum is only growing.
These victories are part of a larger movement for compassion. For too long, wild animals have been exploited for profit and spectacle. Thanks to the tireless efforts of advocates, lawyers, and citizens, we are finally correcting these wrongs.
As an animal law attorney, advocate, and lifelong animal lover, I believe the use of wild animals in circuses is an outdated and unethical practice that must end. These performances are spectacles of suffering.
Wild and Unbound: What These Animals Were Meant to Be
Wild animals are not props—they are sentient beings. Elephants, for example, are highly intelligent and social, roaming up to 30 miles a day in the wild. In circuses, they are chained for hours and trained using painful tools like bullhooks and electric prods.
Lions and tigers, solitary and territorial by nature, are denied their instinctual behaviors in confinement, often leading to stress and self-harm. Primates, emotionally complex and intelligent, are torn from their mothers and trained using fear-based methods. The psychological damage is severe.
These animals were not born to perform—they were born to live free.
What Circuses Say About Us
Circuses don’t just abuse animals; they reflect a troubling aspect of humanity—where profit justifies suffering. Supporting these acts undermines our values of compassion and justice.
The Law Is Finally Catching Up
Historically, animals have been treated as property, not as sentient beings. But scientific evidence is changing that. With laws like Washington’s SB 5065, we’re seeing legal recognition of animal sentience and the slow dismantling of archaic systems.
A Growing Wave of Compassion
Public opinion is shifting. Documentaries, investigative journalism, and dedicated advocacy have exposed the hidden cruelty of circuses.
Washington’s new law marks the beginning of a new era—where empathy replaces exploitation in both policy and public conscience.
I’ve never attended a wild animal circus. Even as a child, I felt a deep unease. Today, that discomfort is shared by many, and it represents a collective awakening. The sight of elephants in costumes, chained and forced to perform, is not entertainment—it’s heartbreaking.
Let’s Speak Up. Let’s Ban Animal Circuses.
There’s no justification for continuing wild animal circuses. They are cruel, outdated, and unnecessary. Every one of us—advocates, lawmakers, parents, citizens—has a role to play in ending them everywhere they still exist. I remain hopeful that, one day, animal circuses will only exist in history books—as a painful chapter we’ve outgrown. The time is now to recognize wild animals as beings worthy of dignity and freedom.
To learn more about animal advocacy and law, visit my website:
My book, A Voice for Animals, explores the legal, emotional, and moral dimensions of protecting animals. Together, we can build a world where animals are respected, protected, and free.