| Fall '96 Poultry Press
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Church Raising Emus for Slaughter
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(photo courtesty of Jan Whalen)
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The Rev. Michie Proctor of the First Baptist Church of Southwest
Broward in Hollywood, Florida told the press in September that his church
is raising 250 emus to be shipped to poor families in the Caribbean and
Central America. However, the church is having trouble feeding the emus
and hopes for divine intervention to pick up "a food tab of $1,000 a
week."
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The church admits that the emus are sweet, exuberant birds with a
"penchant for spontaneous gaiety" that includes dancing.
United Poultry Concerns received calls from local people requesting
help for the emus. They appeared ill-fed and unwell. Rev. Proctor told
UPC that the emus arrived there in bad condition. Yet more shipping and
other horrors await these unhappy birds if the church carries out its
plan.
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What Can I Do?
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- Please urge Rev. Proctor in your own polite words to provide permanent
sanctuary to the emus who have come under the church's care and to find
compassionate and more efficient ways to help poor families in other
countries. As a published letter stated, "According to the article, an
adult emu is fed 2 pounds of wheat-corn mixture a day. This grain could
be consumed directly by humans or planted and cultivated to feed many
people. The church is undermining its good intentions and doing a
disservice to low-income families in Belize by wasting resources and
encouraging the slaughter of animals." Contact: Dr. Michie Proctor, First
Baptist Church of Southwest Broward, 9741 Berechah Drive, Hollywood, FL
33024.
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