Ever see a bear in the wild riding a bike? Or elephants in the jungle standing on their heads? How about a tiger willingly jumping through a flaming hoop? Nope, of course not-because animals don't perform uncomfortable and unnatural tricks unless they've been forced to with whips, prods, muzzles, and cages.

The nightmare starts when young animals are taken from their mothers to spend their lives chained in dark, smelly trailers and arena basements. Circus trainers beat and whip animals to force them to perform ridiculous tricks. They prod elephants’ sensitive skin with sharp hooks; burn bears’ paws to force them to stand on their hind legs; and choke tigers with ropes to make them obey. Some animals even have their noses broken. The animals do what the trainers want just to make the pain stop.

Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus got more than it bargained for at its “Junior Ringmaster” contest in Chicago. When Ringling invited kids to read a circus script on stage, 12-year-old Maryanne Scudiero used her turn at the mike to give the audience a crash course in the horrors of life for animals in the circus. The Ringling Bros. clown tried to grab the microphone from her, but Maryanne hung on and kept educating onlookers about the cruelty in the circus. Way to go!

When third-grader Amanda Walker-Serrano learned that her school was planning a trip to the circus, she circulated a petition requesting an alternative field trip because of the abuse that animals suffer in the circus. Thirty of her classmates had signed on to the appeal when the school forbade her to circulate it any more at school and threatened to punish Amanda if she continued speaking out against the circus. Amanda and her parents are taking the school to court to uphold her right to speak freely about animal suffering in circuses -- a right guaranteed to everyone under the First Amendment, no matter what your age.

Sign up for PETA’s Student Activist Network!
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You probably heard about Free Willy star Keiko finally being returned to the waters he was captured from 19 years earlier. Like many marine mammals in captivity, Keiko languished in a tiny concrete tank for years, far from his family, before activists began a campaign to set him free. Help turn the tide for marine mammals like Keiko by refusing to visit aquariums and marine parks and educating others about how these beautiful animals suffer for our amusement.


    * Tell everyone you know how animals suffer in the circus, and encourage them not to go. Circulate a petition at your school but get permission from school authorities first.

    * If you can’t avoid going to the circus with your class on a field trip, write for PETA’s free “Circus Check” guide. It tells you everything to look out for that shows animals are being abused. If you see signs that animals are suffering,tell everyone, and write a letter to your local paper explaining why you’ll never go to the circus again.

    * Create a display for your class or library about how animals suffer in the circus. Contact PETA for free materials.

    * When you’re surfing the Web, don’t miss www.Circuses.com for factsheets, videos, photos, action alerts, and information about specific circuses.

    * Be an ele-friend and send for a free copy of “An Elephant’s Life,” a cool new comic book. Write to PETA, 501 Front St., Norfolk, VA 23510.



People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals
501 Front St., Norfolk, VA. 23510; 757-622-PETA