Until 2007, you wouldn’t have seen wolves in Washington. Though historically common throughout the Pacific Northwest, by the early 1900s shooting, poisoning and trapping had eradicated the state’s wolves. Today, thanks to the Endangered Species Act, we have a fledgling population of an estimated 52 wolves as a result of their 1995 reintroduction in adjacent Idaho, and migrating animals from Canada.
Past polling has indicated that over 70 percent of Washington residents support wolf recovery in the state, yet you may not guess that if you live in Spokane. Here, vehement anti-wolf propaganda campaigns continue to spread false information about wolves, including efforts designed to scare local residents into thinking wolves are dangerous predators that will eat our children for lunch!
No other animal in history has been the subject of so many hateful myths and misinformation campaigns. I grew up in Spokane, and as a child I learned all the fairy tales about wolves – The Three Little Pigs, Red Riding Hood – that predispose us to fear this endangered species. Indeed, the folklore and Wild West vigilante attitude toward wolves is so pervasive, it influences how some want to “manage” wolves back into oblivion. Too often, fear-based hatred seems to prevail over science and common sense.
Demonizing and persecuting wolves once again is not the future we want for Washington.