Mexico City Bans Violent Bullfighting to Fury, Celebration

Mexico City lawmakers overwhelmingly voted in favor of a ban on bullfights in the Mexican capital this week, triggering fury from fans and celebration from animal rights advocates, the Guardian reported.

The law, approved with a 61-1 vote, sets new rules that are part of an initiative called “bullfighting without violence.” It prohibits the killing of bulls, the use of sharp objects that could injure them, and sets time limits on how long the animals can be kept in the ring.

The debate on violent bullfighting has been going on for years and this law was seen as an attempt to find a compromise between animal rights supporters and “fiesta-brava” enthusiasts.

Animal rights activists and lawmakers in favor of the bill, joined by Mexico City Mayor Clara Brugada, walked out onto the steps of the local congress carrying stuffed bull dolls to celebrate, while police in riot gear surrounded the area, the Associated Press wrote.

Bullfighting fans and matadors reacted negatively to the legislation. Some tried to breach the police barricade at the congress while carrying signs saying that being fans of bullfighting is “a point of pride.”

While bullfighting is a tradition across Latin America that has long been drawing big crowds across Mexican arenas, it’s highly criticized for its cruelty as many bulls are killed in the fights.

Animal rights groups say that about 180,000 bulls are killed every year around the world.

Bullfighters warned that the move negatively impacted the city’s economy as bullfighting creates 80,000 direct jobs and 146,000 indirect jobs nationwide.

In June 2022, a judge in Mexico City banned the practice and closed an arena labeled as the world’s largest bullfighting ring after ruling that the fights violated the residents’ rights to live free of surrounding violence.

In 2023, Mexico’s Supreme Court overturned the ban without an explanation, and bullfighting arenas filled once again with fans of the tradition.