Spain Overturns Bullfighting Ban

On Wednesday, the Constitutional Court in Spain voted eight to three to reverse a law that banned bullfighting, which had been passed by the Catalonian Parliament in 2010. The court called the ban “unconstitutional” and said their decision was driven by protecting the cultural traditions of bullfighting in the autonomous Catalan state. “The Constitutional Court of Spain has undermined the will of the vast majority of Catalans—who want nothing to do with bloody bullfighting spectacles, in which animals are repeatedly speared and stabbed to death,” People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals International Director Mimi Bekhechi said. “Bullfighting must stop—if not because the law requires it, then because it’s the right thing to do.” Spanish residents have expressed opposition to the sport in recent years and attendance at bullfights has fallen drastically. In 2015, the European Parliament voted to halt the $110 million in agricultural subsidies that Spain received annually for raising bulls for bullfighting.