Wild Horses, Young Adults and Fresh Hope for the Future

Horse News

By R.T. Fitch on April 15, 2010 • ( 6 Comments )

Co-authored by Equine Authors Terri Farley and R.T. Fitch

“From the Mouths of Babes”

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During “March for Mustangs” in D.C., March 25^th there were many, many things that awed and inspired me.  From the sheer number of people who attended to the diverse cross section of American society represented during the rally.  But perhaps the most subtle and most unexpected surprise was the participation and enthusiasm of the young people.  They were there and they were very outspoken and obvious; years before their time.

Witnessing them protest, shout and speak (eloquently) brought me back to the assertion that the BLM woke a sleeping giant when they tormented Cloud, and I now believe that I am correct.

During the rally, young Amelia Perrin, daughter of Suzanne Roy of the Wild Horse Preservation Campaign not only held banners and marched but took the podium and spoke to the crowd.  I was extremely impressed and moved.

Much respected author, Terri Farley asked Amelia if she would write about her experience so that Terri could share it with other children on her blog and below is that report, reprinted with permission from both Terri and Amelia.

Please allow me to introduce a very special young lady that brings with her hope for the horses and the promise of a better day, tomorrow.

“My best friend Chloe and I love horses. We have been riding horses for around 7 years. I have been raising money for Return to Freedom Wild Horse Sanctuary since I was 6 and now I’m a youth ambassador for the sanctuary. This summer Chloe and I got to visit Return to Freedom and we worked there. We rode on the feed truck in the morning and threw hay to the wild horse bands living in the hills. In the afternoons, we mucked stalls and paddocks, and we even got to help gentle Choctaw foals!!!!! We really love wild horses, so when we heard about the March for Mustangs rally in Washington D.C. we were really excited that we could go.

The drive to D.C. was long, so when we got there it was pretty late. We went to dinner and met up with Deniz Bolbol who volunteers for IDA (In Defense of Animals). Then went to our hotel and went to bed. The next day we met with the staff of Senator Jim Bunning from Kentucky. In the room where we met, he had put pictures of famous racehorses all over the walls!! Around 1:30ish we went to the rally. My friend Chloe and I held a banner, and we did an interview with a TV station from Europe. Some of the people who spoke at the rally are Ginger Kathrens the filmmaker of the “Cloud Wild Stallion of the Rockies” series; Wendie Malick an actress; Clay Canfield – he sang his song “Wild Horses,” Suzanne Roy (my mom) she works for American Wild horse Preservation Campaign, and me! This is what I said:

‘My name is Amelia Perrin and I am in the 6th grade at Carolina Friends School in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. I am 12 years old. I have been riding horses for 7 years.

Part of the BLM’s mission is to protect historic lands, plants and animals for future generations. My friend Chloe and I came today to speak for the kids who are those future generations. We are part of those future generations, and this is something we care very much about.

We’re here to ask Congress to save America’s wild horses. It’s time to stop the cruel wild horse round ups and let these amazing horses live free on our lands. In our minds horses mean freedom and wild horses should stay wild.

I work with a horse named Berry and he was abused before I knew him. So I know how horses hold on to things that people have done to them. The round ups terrorize horses and tear their families apart. They will carry this pain with them throughout their lives.

These horses can’t speak for themselves, so that’s why we’re here. The American people and especially the kids of America want our wild horses to stay free.’

Another person who spoke is a BLM volunteer named Rob Pliskin. He brought his BLM badge and said he used to wear it proudly, but he can never wear it proudly again until we start to treat these horses right. He was amazing.

The whole rally was really fun and everyone was soo amazing! This rally was right in front of the White House! After that we went back to the hotel. Then my mom and Deniz went to a meeting and Chloe and I stayed in the hotel and we got room service!! Later, they came back and we went to bed. We had to get up early the next day to meet with Rep. David Price’s staff. He is my Congressman and a big animal lover. Then we picked up Deniz from her meeting with Senator Boxer’s office and started on our drive home. We got out of D.C. OK. Then we hit traffic but Chloe and I amused ourselves by sticking our heads out the window and waving at people! We also came up with ideas for names of horses at Return to Freedom. The drive took longer then it was supposed to, but we had fun.

It was so exciting to go to this rally but especially to meet Wendie Malick who is really nice and she has horses, and also Ginger Kathrens and Makendra from the Cloud Foundation. Just last week, they were in the Pryor Mountains and saw Cloud living free. Chloe and I believe that all wild horses should keep their freedom just like Cloud.

That’s why we went to DC.”

Categories: Horse News, The Force of the Horse, Wild Horses/Mustangs

Tagged as: BLM, Clay Canfield, cloud, Equine, ginger Kathrens, Horse, In Defense of Animals, March for Mustangs, Mustang, protest, The Cloud Foundation, Washington DC, Wendi Malick, Wild Horse, Wild Mustang