Online abuse forces school to call off possum hunt fundraiser

A rural Waikato primary school has been forced to cancel a possum hunt after an international petition sparked a fierce backlash online.

Animal rights activists are celebrating, saying children should not be taught that killing “sentient beings” is “a fun and rewarding activity”.

Orini Combined School, between the Mangawara River and Te Hoe Mountain north of Hamilton, planned to hold The Great Orini Possum Hunt to raise money for a class camp in Coromandel, but is now planning to hold a disco instead, leaving the school several thousand dollars down on its fundraising goal.

“Based on other rural schools we were expecting a profit of $4000 to $5000 over one weekend,” board of trustees chairwoman Tracy Fuller said. “Our disco will bring in approximately $300.”

Fuller said the cancellation was due to “personal attacks” received through school email addresses and the school Facebook page, which were “extremely upsetting” for the people involved. The abuse was so bad the school had to temporarily remove its Facebook page.

“We had a month to go before the event and felt the negative social media comments could harm our little school more than the benefits of the fundraiser,” Fuller said. “The people commenting on the petition were mainly from overseas and did not seem to realise that in New Zealand possums are a serious pest.”

The petition was started by organisation Lady Freethinker, a nonprofit group based in Los Angeles that campaigns against animal cruelty.

“I started the petition because it’s inherently wrong for a school to teach young children that killing sentient beings, who suffer and feel pain just like we do, is a fun and rewarding activity,” said founder Nina Jackel.

She said the organisation did not direct any abuse at the school.

“We encourage compassion, not abuse.”