In the early 1980s, an animal rights group airlifted nearly 600 wild burros out of Grand Canyon National Park.
The media ate it up: Magazines sold full-page ads about the cause, and families from the East Coast clamored to adopt the rescued animals.
But conflict around wild burros in the West still exists today. What does one of the flashiest rescue stories of the last century tell us about the power of animal activism to make enduring change?
Featuring Rebbel Clayton, Abbie Harlow, John MacPete, Dave Sharrow, Travis Ericsson, and Eric Claman.
A full transcript of this episode is available here.
SUPPORT
Outside/In is made possible with listener support. Click here to become a sustaining member of Outside/In.
Follow Outside/In on Instagram or join our private discussion group on Facebook.
LINKS
You can read Abbie Harlow’s paper “The Burro Evil” here.
If you’re interested in learning more about the burro adoption process, Cynthia Brannigan outlined her experience as an employee of the Fund for Animals in her book “The Last Diving Horse in America.” Research for this episode was also sourced from Julie Hoffman Marshall’s Making Burros Fly and Cleveland Amory’s Ranch of Dreams.
Black Beauty Ranch currently houses more than 600 animals. You can read more about their work here.
Check out dozens of archival shots from the rescue, via Northern Arizona University’s Cline Library.
And yes, you can watch Brighty of the Grand Canyon on Youtube.
CREDITS
Host: Nate Hegyi
Reported and produced by Marina Henke
Mixed by Marina Henke
Editing by Taylor Quimby
Our staff includes Justine Paradis, Felix Poon and Kate Dario
Executive producer: Taylor Quimby
Rebecca Lavoie is NHPR’s Director of On-Demand Audio
Music by BlueDot Sessions.
Our theme music is by Breakmaster Cylinder.
Special thanks to: June McGinley Camp, Sue Tygielski, Cynthia Brannigan, Jay Abbott, Janet Balsom, Wayne Pacelle, Colin Pena, Max and Amy Loui. Archival materials sourced from the Museum Collection at Grand Canyon National Park and the University of New Mexico’s Center for Southwest Research.
Outside/In is a production of New Hampshire Public Radio.
Submit a question to the “Outside/Inbox.” We answer queries about the natural world, climate change, sustainability, and human evolution. You can send a voice memo to outsidein@nhpr.org or leave a message on our hotline, 1-844-GO-OTTER (844-466-8837).
