A Litigation Article from All-Creatures.org

Court Declared that a History of Animal Oppression [Cockfights] Does not Justify it Going Forward

From Nathan Winograd
November 2022

All our societies evolve as a matter of necessity and this means customs that are cruel and unacceptable may be among those to go.

A Federal Court dismissed a lawsuit claiming the federal ban on cockfighting violates the historical traditions of U.S. territories, such as the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. The Court ruled that:

[T]he federal interests in regulating interstate commerce, preventing the spread of avian flu, and ensuring the humane treatment of animals outweigh the degree of intrusion into the internal affairs of the CNMI as it relates to the tradition of cockfighting.

The argument by plaintiff — a self-proclaimed “lifelong cockfighter” — that local traditions trump federal law is absurd. A history of animal oppression does not justify it going forward. Indeed, the last two centuries of human history have witnessed the widespread rejection of many abusive practices in terms of our relationships, including racism, sexism, and other discrimination. Likewise when it comes to animals, neither people nor animals need be prisoners of an unjust and misguided past.

While cultural rituals may be important, they do not deserve deference when involving animal abuse. As one commentator noted, “All our societies evolve as a matter of necessity and this means customs that are cruel and unacceptable may be among those to go.” Moreover, “the Constitution empowers Congress to ‘make all needful rules and regulations respecting [a] territory.’”

To that end, several U.S. lawmakers recently introduced federal legislation to strengthen the law that makes cockfighting a felony in all 50 states and U.S. territories. H.R. 9309 would outlaw online gambling on animal fights, ban shipping adult roosters through the U.S. mail, and enable citizens to file civil actions against known dogfighters and cockfighters.

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