More than 30 advocates stood in the 30 degree cold Wednesday night to protest the impending deer kill in Griffy Lake Nature Preserve.
Gathered on the steps of City Hall, they held signs and chanted as members of Bloomington City Council entered the building for their weekly meeting.
The protest was organized by the deer advocacy group BANIDS, who for months have opposed the idea of sharpshooting deer as a means of protecting Griffy's biodiversity.
BANIDS has tried many different ways to get the deer kill overturned, including bringing humane society representatives to Bloomington to determine the feasibility of non-lethal methods of deer reduction, as well as proposing an ordinance to ban bow hunting in city limits and put a stay on the deer kill for two years. BANIDS member Steve Wagschal says the protest isn't the group's last stand.
"We're still trying to make the same claim, the same argument, although the deer kill might begin at any time, so now we're kind of going against the clock in a sense, so we would still want to stop it," Wagschal said.
Wagschal said BANIDS has obtained documents through Freedom of Information Act requests that contain "secret information" about the facts used to support the deer kill, which will be released to the public in the coming weeks.
City council member Chris Sturbaum, who voted in favor of the deer kill, respected the protesters for continuing to express their opinion.
"I grew up as an activist, and a neighborhood activist, and I sympathize, it's the way to speak to your government," Sturbaum said.
The city council meeting featured public comment from several of the protesters, including two young girls who presented a "save the deer" poster to the council that was signed by 46 students. BANIDS members Sandy Shapshay and Maria Heslin also spoke, citing documents they've obtained that they say call into question both the validity of the science used to justify the deer kill as well as the expected duration of the deer kill.
Starting November 15, the sharpshooting firm White Buffalo will kill up to 100 deer in Griffy Lake Nature Preserve.
