“The Indian elephant is known sometimes to weep. Sir E. Tennent, in describing these which he saw captured and bound in Ceylon, says, some 'lay motionless on the ground, with no other indication of suffering than the tears which suffused their eyes and flowed incessantly'.”

Charles Darwin, The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals

In Brief

All around our country, solitary captive elephants are suffering for our supposed entertainment, in circuses and zoos, sham sanctuaries and roadside attractions.  To be separated from their family, isolated and confined is especially devastating to elephants, who are by nature complex, intelligent, self-aware, intensely emotional and highly social.  That we do this is an atrocity.

Some elephants used for “entertainment” are born in captivity. But some are captured in the wild. In many instances, these elephants have been violently separated from their mothers, shipped across the world as freight, and sentenced to a miserable existence, deprived of the company of other elephants or any sources of comfort contact. Asian elephants may be “trained” to comply by means of The Crush or Phajaan, which involves binding them with ropes and beating them for weeks on end or even longer.  The isolation, emotional and physical chaos, and relentless torment to which they are subjected is shattering.

Typically, captive elephants are neglected, deprived, housed and transported in deplorable conditions and left to languish in emotional despair and unrelenting physical agony. This abuse exposes them to chronic health problems; they have a shorter life expectancy than elephants in the wild – which, given the circumstances, may seem a stroke of unintended mercy.

Advocates for Captive Elephants

Audrey Mealia, Global Head of Wildlife at World Animal Protection, has said: “For too long, these intelligent, sociable creatures have been the victims of a cruel trade that rips baby elephants from their mothers and family groups. They are destined for a life of suffering and brutality behind the scenes, cruelly exploited as entertainers under the guise of innocent fun for visitors. Tourists are duped into believing they are helping these elephants and the conservation of the species, while in reality, they are creating the demand for such activities.”

Weeping Elephant Project’s goal is to stop the importation and exploitation of elephants for entertainment.   We identify offending zoos , circuses and other attractions and focus our efforts in the region in which it is located or is appearing.  To that end, we use social media, opinion pieces, collaboration with local advocates and animal protection organizations, and paid advertising, to prepare and educate the public and online neighborhoods and communities about the extreme suffering, isolation, physical agony, and abject fear to which we subject elephants so that individuals can make an informed decision about what they are endorsing.

A word about looking away:

It’s excruciating to see, learn, hear and think about the extreme suffering, isolation, relentless physical agony and abject fear we bring to bear on captive elephants and other animals here and around the world. It’s a great relief and much tidier to look away. But when it’s too emotionally wrenching to bear, if the elephants have to live it for a lifetime, we owe it to them at an absolute minimum to bear witness to the unspeakable consequences of our shameful conduct.