Welcome to Macquarie Fields Leisure Centre in Sydney's western suburbs.
The centre decided to hold a 'family fish in' day courtesy of Campbeltown City Council.
Towards the end of winter months the pools were filled with trout.
The public were invited to come and 'throw in a line'
to see if they could catch a fish by hooking it through the throat, gills or face.
A fish is thinking feeling sentient being who suffers fear and pain.
This fish was left to hang and slowly die in agony with a hook embedded in his throat.
There is not much chance for the fish in an olympic swimming pool.
All the fish will eventually be caught and killed by adults and children alike.
People brought tools like this one to gauge out hooks from the fishes throats.
This poor helpless fish was still alive as this was done.
This would be the equivalent to you undergoing surgery without anesthetic.
These two people laugh while a small trout fights for her life gauged by a hook.
There were many children at the swimming pool that morning.
People brought their fish killing kits with them.
Sometimes the fish were gauged by hooks and dropped into nets.
Children are taught that the murder of animals is acceptable.
This fish was left inside the net on the concrete.
Who is there to care about her fear and pain?
She opened her mouth as she slowly suffocated to death.
She died alone and in agony.
And no-one at the pool that morning seemed to care.
They were already preoccupied by the prospect of the next kill.
A man displays his tiny 'catch' before dropping her into a bucket.
Both of these fish were still alive.
Her delicate fins and gills were still moving.
She will die slowly and she will die in agony.
A lot of the fish were not big enough for people to eat them.
It was the sheer pleasure of the bloodsport that drew people here.
Terribly mutilated fish were thrown into an Esky brought from home.
They were left to float and suffer in the icy water.
Yes. He is still breathing.
Many of the people seemed inexperienced at being able to handle fish carefully.
This man stands on a fishes face as he rips out the line from her throat.
Fish were often stomped onto the concrete while still alive.
A fish crushed to death beneath a boot. People did not want to touch the fish.
People did not want to get their hands and clothes dirty.
Local children participated in the carnage.
Parents set a bad example by inflicting unnecessary violence on innocent animals.
This little boy was more interested in watching the fish swim than in killing them.
Many of the children seem more curious about the fish than anything else.
But teaching them to kill fish does not educate them about fish.
Instead it teaches children that violence against others is acceptable.
Swimming pools in the suburbs are not rivers or ecosystems.
Children need to learn about nature by being out in nature.
They do not learn about nature by stomping a fish into concrete at the local pool.
Cruelty to animals is not an activity of leisure.
It is a cowardly act of violence committed by uncaring people.
What kind of education are we giving our children here?
Will they grow up to teach their own children to be cruel to others?
Will they learn that causing pain and suffering to others is okay?
A man stomps another fish to death on the concrete.
Her insides squirt out of her body while she is still alive.
Mindless and senseless violence is not a laughing matter.
Nor should a leisure centre be used to harm innocent animals.
This handsome speckled trout is thrown into another bucket.
He is left to bleed to death.
Yes. He is still alive.
Violent acts against non-human animals turn into violent acts against human animals.
So how do we educate people to care about the well being of others?
To say, you are a thinking feeling creature of the universe, just like me.
You are innocent. I will protect you against this pain and suffering born of violence.
I will not be privy to the acts of cruelty promoted by my local community.
I will not hurt a living feeling animal.
Fish belong in rivers and eco-systems, not olympic swimming pools.
They each want to live a full and glorious life just like we do.
Swimming pools are used to teach people how to swim.
They are not to be used to teach children how to hurt others.
Families need to learn how to protect all animals and the natral world.
Or at the end of the day, we will be left with nothing but our own unfullfillment.
Remember this fish. He is a miracle of nature, born from a tiny egg, he grew into a mature adult. Just like us, he loved his life!
Leisure Centres are meant to provide fitness and recreation for children and their families. They are not to be used for cruelty to animals.
Click here
to make a donation or send a cheque/money order to;
The Thylazine Foundation Pty Ltd
GPO Box 1480, Darwin, Northern Territory, 0801, Australia.
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