Lassie Can Wait

Personal Disclaimer: In no way do I find animal cruelty to be a good thing.

You know what I really hate about TV? I hate those pointless commercials that take up all the “valuable” five minutes of time that you have every day to watch TV. I mean think about it. The Gieco commercials with the stereotypical cavemen could have cavemen somewhere feeling terribly offended. There are also those TV commercials that have important info but are, shall we say, STRAIGHT UP NASTY!!!!!!!! (i.e. the Clear Blue pregnancy test commercial that feels the need to visually show you how the pee reaches the testing strip…EW!!!).

Although these commercials are rather trivial, the one commercial that probably annoys me more than any other commercial I have ever seen is the ASPCA commercial. It’s like they feel the need to make you cry your way through a box of tissues while bombarding you with disturbing pictures of wrongfully treated animals. To make things worse, you get to hear Sarah McLachlan’s speech encouraging YOU to help save an abused animal that you will A) probably never meet (so its kinda like giving financial aid to the animal you never had) and B) probably help fund the pound that will end up putting it to sleep because of the surplus of animals that already live there (ok that’s kinda harsh but you get the general idea).

After that little shpeal, you may be wondering why the hell I would be so cynical to something that is for a good cause. As I said earlier, I am not opposed to stopping animal cruelty in any way. I love animals. What does piss me off though is that people are focusing more on saving the lives of animals rather than attempting to protect people, particularly children, from domestic abuse.

While I’m sure the ASPCA does not mean to lessen the importance of protecting victims of domestic abuse, it is still something that I feel very strongly about. One reason I feel so strongly is because of the greater impact a grown child will have on the world. An animal may be a loving companion for when we are sick or sad, but can they help other victims of domestic abuse or increase awareness of how others can help? I’m pretty sure there is not a single human being that understands “bark.”

Another reason I feel that child abuse is a more important issue to address is because of the effects abuse can have on a child physically and emotionally. Physically, a child can experience broken bones, possible disabilities, and sometimes even death depending on the extremes of the abuse. There are some teen parents, for instance, that completely ignore their child from birth and throw them in the trash can (I don’t know how it is in your city, but sadly, I know there have been some in Louisville).

Emotional abuse can also be incredibly damaging to a child. Abuse that they receive as a child may later affect how they act towards their kids as adults. The phrase “monkey see, monkey do” is very true for children because they learn by actions of others. A child does not know any better unless they are taught by a parent or other guardian.

Ok so after reading all of this, you may be thinking: “Well this may be true and all, but what am I supposed to do to help? I’m not a social worker or a lawyer. I can’t just take a kid away.” Well no duh Captain Obvious, BUT there is something that you CAN do. Unlike the ASPCA, in most cities, if not all, there is some form of a homeless shelter or women’s shelter that is dedicated to helping victims of domestic abuse. . Rather than just simply sending money, working with domestic abuse victims is more effective because it lets them know that somebody somewhere loves and cares about them. They also feel more self-sufficient because they have a loving support system to back them up. Any “genius” can pick up a phone and dial the 800 # on screen, but taking time to get to know a person is much more valuable.

Now, you may also be saying: “Well helping out sounds fun, but how am I supposed to help out these women and children if I don’t see commercials advertising where the shelters are?” You most likely won’t see shelter commercials for the protection of the people already living in the shelters. What you CAN do though is look for a local shelter on the internet (hey you’re already on there!), or you can be “hip and fly” and search in the old fashioned yellow pages. You don’t have to be an adult to volunteer! Doing so is not only helping the people that live in shelters, but also making you feel better about yourself.

It is very important to be aware of any domestic violence present in your community. For more information about helping abuse victims, talk to a service director at a local church. Most churches are associated with either a homeless or women’s shelter that is always open for YOUR assistance. If you are still one of those people that feel strongly about helping animals, I encourage you to help out, but don’t limit yourself to just one cause. Find a medium between saving the puppies and helping out the community, but please, don’t forget about the kids. It’s not just their future, it’s yours too…

*Jenny Simon*