Animal rights organisation NARA has slammed the resurrection of the live animal crib, describing the move as "insulting".
Lord Mayor and Green Party Councillor Caroline Conroy sparked a major controversy after announcing the Mansion House would no longer host a live animal crib this Christmas, bringing an apparent end to a decades long tradition. The crib, consisting of animals such as donkeys and sheep, was brought to Dublin each year by the Irish Farmer’s Association.
However, Dublin City Council announced last week that a permanent end to the attraction had been revoked. The tradition has now found a new home, just a few hundred metres away from the Mansion House, in St Stephen's Green.
READ MORE: Cancelled live animal Christmas Crib to be resurrected in Stephen's Green
While the decision has been celebrated by many, NARA argues that Fine Gael politicians involved with the measure did not support the issue out of a commitment to Christmas traditions. Spokesperson Laura Broxson said the campaign took away from far more relevant issues, including homelessness and the energy crisis.
She said: “Putting live animals in an enclosure does nothing to evoke the ‘Christmas spirit’ and in 2022 we should be beyond using animals as inanimate props for entertainment. We hope this last minute move by Fine Gael is just a final tantrum on their part, and something that won’t be repeated next year.”
The group also argued that the resurrection of the live crib was being used to showcase the IFA’s farming methods. Ms Broxson questioned the ethics on using farm animals for entertainment, saying that the live crib helped glossed over the many animal abuses that occur in society.
She added: “If they really want people to know more about farming, they should invite people to dairy farms where calves are taken from their mothers, pig farms where the animals never see the light of day, chicken farms where they never get to see a blade of grass and live thousands to a shed, or perhaps a slaughterhouse where they all go in the end.”
Visitors will be able to view the classic nativity scene from December 8 onwards. This year’s animals, including two sheep, two donkeys and a goat, will be housed in the Summer House in Stephen’s Green Park.
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