A campaign spearheaded by the Rodeo Education Campaign (REC) of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

CAMPAIGN SUCCESS!!

In a grand example of how a committed, localized effort, can make a direct impact against rodeo abuse, Gary Barbera Dodge has withdrawn sponsorship to the Liberty Pro Rodeo after the launch of the "Barbera Brutality" campaign.

A half an hour into the first on-site demonstration at Gary Barbera Dodge, the operations manager came outside to inform the REC demonstrators that the business had withdrawn their support of the rodeo and handed over this statement.

When the 2007 Liberty Pro Rodeo mistakenly printed a Gary Barbera Dodge ad in their rodeo program, there was some immediate confusion as to Barbera's position with rodeo sponsorship. The REC immediately moved to clarify the situation and contacted Gary Barbera Dodge. That has since been cleared up and Barbera Dodge has further confirmed their commitment to not support cruelty with this letter.

Thank you to everyone who participated in making this campaign a success! Please contact Gary Barbera Dodge and congratulate them on their compassionate choice:

Without its sponsors like Dodge and Coca-Cola, both pictured here, the rodeo industry could not survive. In his terror and torment, this horse has bucked so blindly and violently that he has fallen. Many rodeo horses become injured, often fatally, this way.

"Gary Barbera’s # 1 Dodgeland"
7810 Roosevelt Boulevard
Philadelphia PA 19152
Phone: 215-333-3700
Fax: 215-338-5069
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Scroll down to see how this campaign began...

In the market for a new or used car? If you oppose animal cruelty, think twice about buying a Dodge, or doing any business with Gary Barbera Dodge.

Like many Dodge dealerships, Gary Barbera Dodge sponsors abusive rodeos. And not just any rodeo, but a rodeo supplied by the infamous “Three Hills Rodeo” stock company, whose president, David Morehead, pled guilty to 36 counts of horse cruelty right here in Pennsylvania (Read more about this here.)

Mr. Morehead has also been caught on tape numerous times using a 5,000 volt hot-shot electric prod on horses and bulls. Watch Three Hills Rodeo personel shocking animals below.

Mr. Morehead’s use of the hot-shot is not only a violation of state law, but also the rodeo’s so-called “humane rules.” Showing once again that Three Hills Rodeo is run by not only a cheater, but a criminal. And Gary Barbera Dodge is proud to sponsor THIS?

The Liberty Pro Rodeo, in coordination with Three Hills Rodeo, also features the stunning cruelty of “calf roping,” where men on horses chase down and clothesline a 3-4 month old calf, slam him into the ground, and drag him by the neck through the dirt. Calf roping has been banned in many cities and municipalities across the United States. See more photos and videos exposing the animal injuries, deaths, and cruelty inherent in rodeo, at RodeoCruelty.com

Any rodeo featuring animals is a spectacle of cruelty. All rodeos depend on implements of torture including buckstraps, electric prods and spurs to inflict pain and torment on the animals in order to get them to "perform". For example, in the photo at right the bull is not rearing naturally, but in reaction to a rope tied around his sensitive abdomen area and likely other abuses in the chute such as shocking, spiking, tail-twisting or raking.

Without financial backing from sponsors like Gary Barbera Dodge, rodeos would not survive.

Below is a letter sent to Gary Barbera Dodge from the Rodeo Education Campaign (REC) in effort to spark a dialogue on the issue. Additionally, REC sent a DVD of rodeo abuse to Mr. Barbera--which he has reportedly viewed. Unbelievably, Mr. Barbera has still refused to withdraw support to this cruel industry--apparently believing that ethical business policies and compassionate choices are of no interest to the car-buying public. Show Gary Barbera Dodge just how wrong this assumption is!

Learn more about calf roping, steer busting, "bucking" horses, and the atrocities inflicted on animals in rodeo at RodeoCruelty.com. Then go to CorporateThugs.com to find out what you can do as a consumer to get corporations out of the business of subsidizing abuse.