A controversy has arisen over a hunting outing organized for teenagers by the Gabarret youth center. The community defends an activity rooted in local culture, while the association Futur denounces a practice as “cruel” and unacceptable for minors. The president of the community and candidate for re-election, Philippe Latry, fully supports the initiative.
An activity offered by the Gabarret youth center (Landes d’Armagnac) has sparked a reaction from an animal rights defense association. Adolescents aged 11 to 17 took part in a “hunting discovery” outing on March 18, causing outrage from the association Futur. Activists criticized the practice as “cruel” and “inappropriate for minors” in a letter sent to the community of communes of Landes d’Armagnac, which oversees the youth center. Philippe Latry, the outgoing president of the community of communes and a candidate for re-election, stands by the activity.
“We offer activities adapted to our territory”
The youth center accompanied a group of teenagers on a hare-hunting excursion in the Gabarret area. According to Philippe Latry, the activity was a supervised and parent-approved learning experience. He emphasizes that “the young people did not witness the capture of an animal” and no hare was caught that day. He explains, “Hunting is part of the heritage of a rural area like ours. To form an opinion, one must understand.” He details, “Here, we don’t have a skate park or surfing school. We offer nature activities suited to the territory.”
Association Futur criticizes a “extremely cruel” practice
The association Futur, opposed to hunting with hounds, finds the outing unacceptable. Vuk, a social media activist against hunting, came across the youth center’s post and condemned the activity as “tracking an animal to exhaustion.” She describes hare hunting as a practice where animals may be killed with a dagger, drowned (for deer), or “torn apart by dogs” in the case of hares. “Children should not be exposed to this. This is not just a nature outing.”
For the association, the argument of tradition is invalid: “Whether it’s hunting or bullfighting, it’s always the same excuse. When animals are victims without consent, we can no longer talk about tradition, heritage, or anything else. In fact, these are things that should be abolished,” says Vuk.
