This week, Iggy Pop called for Florida Senators Marco Rubio and Rick Scott to co-sponsor the Big Cat Public Safety Act, proposed legislation that would protect tigers and other big cat species from animal abuse.
If passed, the bill would prohibit private ownership, direct public contact and dangerous interactions with big cats such as “cub petting,” a common practice at for-profit zoos and animal sanctuaries. The recent release of Netflix’s Tiger King, which depicts and condemns such practices, helped bolster support for the Big Cat Public Safety Act; it now has support from over half of the House of Representatives as co-sponsors.
Iggy Pop has also signed a high-profile petition in favor of the bill, co-authored by Blackfish director Gabriela Cowperthwaite and the Animal Legal Defense Fund. Other celebrity signers include Kate Mara, Rooney Mara, Joaquin Phoenix, Edie Falco and Hilary Swank.
“The Big Cat Public Safety Act, which has bipartisan support in both the house and senate, is aimed at protecting big cats from abuse and neglect by prohibiting private possession of these wild animals, and banning risky public encounters with them,” Pop said in a statement. “Co-sponsoring this commonsense bill will show the Senators’ commitment to the safety of Floridians and respect for exotic wildlife.”
