Safari Club International Talking Conservation on Capitol Hill
Safari Club International 05.08.12
Safari Club International (SCI) members will participate in more than 170 meetings this week with members of the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate on behalf of hunters everywhere. SCI’s lobby day on Capitol Hill represents the largest annual gathering of U.S. hunters in Washington, DC. This year’s focus will be working with the U.S. Senate to pass H.R. 4089, the Sportsmen’s Heritage Act of 2012.
“The Sportsmen’s Heritage Act of 2012 passed the House on April 17th on a bipartisan vote of 274-146. We now need this bill passed in the Senate,” said SCI President Kevin Anderson. “American outdoorsmen and women need long term guarantees that our sporting heritage will be protected. By passing H.R. 4089 the U.S. Senate will be making a very clear statement that they care about the 30+ million American hunters, anglers, and sport shooters.”
“Hunting is ingrained in our national heritage and has remained an economic pillar even in these difficult times. To protect our tradition of conservation, and its economic benefits to communities all over America, we ask the Senate to join the House in passing H.R. 4089 to protect equal access to the backcountry,” concluded SCI’s Chief Communications Officer Larry Rudolph.
Other legislative priorities SCI members will discuss and support this week include:
- H.R. 1581 & S. 1087 – The Wilderness and Roadless Area Release Act
- Modernizing the Endangered Species Act
- Global Conservation Act of 2012
Protecting hunters’ rights and promoting wildlife conservation, SCI’s two areas of focus, historically has been the interest of hundreds of individuals long before SCI was established. But how did SCI as an organization begin?
Forty years ago, there were many safari clubs across the country made up of local, unaffiliated groups of hunters. One such was Safari Club of Los Angeles, which was formed in April 1971 by forty-seven individuals. In early 1972, an out-of-towner from a similar club in Chicago attended one of the monthly Wednesday night meetings, and it was decided that the L.A. club should attempt to combine with the one in Chicago to make it an affiliated chapter. The founder of Safari Club of Los Angeles, C.J. McElroy, went to the Windy City and instituted the new chapter.
Eleven months after the formation of Safari Club of Los Angeles, on March 9, 1972, the name was changed officially to Safari Club International. SCI continued to reach out to other independent safari clubs throughout the United States in an effort to combine them into a single overall organization.
Today, interest in SCI’s two primary missions has grown a worldwide network. Subsequent involvement and promotion of these missions is rooted in each of our 55,000 members, supported through each of our 190 membership chapters found across the globe, and put into action by government representatives and personnel both nationally and internationally.
In this way, we can encourage an appreciation for nature and wildlife so that conservation efforts remain strong, while also fighting to protect our rich hunting heritage. Big changes can be achieved through the endeavors of many who are united in a mission – the mission of Safari Club International.
