Update: PETA Supporters Violently Detained and Arrested While Rallying Against Cruel Elephant Rides at Texas RenFest

Earlier today, PETA supporters who were gathered peacefully on public property near the Texas Renaissance Festival were arrested by police while rallying alongside a life-sized “battered elephant” to call for an end to cruel elephant rides offered by Trunks and Humps—the notorious exhibitor whose handlers have been seen using sharp, steel-tipped bullhooks to force elephants to comply. Even after animal allies explained that parcel maps confirmed they were on public property, the overzealous chief of police accused them of violating a sign ordinance and cuffed 5 animal allies—including one who two officers forced to the ground on his stomach—and demanded they end the protest.

A PETA supporter being detained at the Texas Renaissance Festival

Credit: PETA

“Elephants deserve to live free from beatings, chains, and the threat of sharp bullhooks, and no one should be arrested for peacefully calling attention to their suffering,” says PETA President Tracy Reiman. “PETA is calling on the Texas Renaissance Festival to get out of the Dark Ages by ending these exploitative spectacles.”

PETA notes that Trunks and Humps has a long history of endangering both animals and the public—and has racked up a slew of federal Animal Welfare Act violations. Just last year, the exhibitor received a critical federal citation after a camel kicked a woman in the head at a church Nativity event, apparently knocking her unconscious.

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to use for entertainment or abuse in any other way”—points out that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kits for people who need a lesson in kindness. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow PETA on X, Facebook, or Instagram.