FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, August 21, 2014
Contact: Steve Hindi (630) 640-1889 Stuart Chaifetz ( 856) 428- 2635
New video of Church-sponsored “pig rassle” reveals unChristian behavior: jokes about beating and sexually abusing animals and children; Bishop of Green Bay questioned about his support
GREEN BAY, WI – New video of a cruel and illegal "pig rassle" church fundraiser August 10 at St. Patrick Parish in Stephensville, Wisconsin documents vile behavior of the event supporters, including talk about abusing animals and children.
SHowing Animals Respect and Kindness (SHARK) has released a video showing the brutal and illegal human/animal fighting at the fundraiser, and today calls for an investigation.
Watch that video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cdin6XJ246s
“It is important to remember this was a Catholic Church event, yet what we saw and experienced was anything but Christ-like behavior,” said SHARK President Steve Hindi. “This included supporters joking about beating and killing pigs and sexually assaulting them and children - while young children were present and listening.”
SHARK is sending the link to this video to David Ricken, the Bishop of Green Bay, and calling on him to answer why a Parish under his rule is sponsoring disgusting behavior that goes against everything his religion is supposed to stand for.
"St. Patrick's Parish has tried to whitewash the animal abuse they sponsor by calling it a church fundraiser,” notes Hindi. "What this video shows is that the Parish should be spending more time teaching their members about Christ’s message of peace and love and stop teaching that abusing animals is a fun and acceptable thing to do."
Earlier this month, SHARK released video that showed youths wallowing in mud contaminated by pig urine and excrement as they try to catch a traumatized pig. The videos illustrate violations of state anti-cruelty and animal righting laws, and child neglect laws. Spectators, organizers and participants could be charged with a misdemeanor or felony. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZDxSW2LWh9U
SHARK has also learned this event was cancelled in 1995 after a parish Assistant District Attorney – Mitchell Metropulos, now an Outagamie County Circuit Court judge – said the event was illegal.
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