From the International Business Times:
Angry Twitter users are firing back at Melissa Bachman after a photo
of the huntress posing with a recently killed lion went viral.
Bachman, who stars in the hunting show “Deadly Passion”
on the specialty network Pursuit Channel, found herself the target of
vicious death wishes and obscenity-laced insults on Monday as critics on
Twitter, YouTube and other social networks blasted the Minnesotan for
her boastful hunting escapades.
The photo in question, posted to her Facebook page on Nov. 1, shows a
smiling Bachman posing with a rifle as a lion carcass lies in the dirt
beneath her. “An incredible day hunting in South Africa,” the caption
reads. “Stalked inside 60-yards on this beautiful male lion...what a
hunt!”
The photo, accompanied by similar photos of Bachman posing with slain
deer, bears and other wildlife, went relatively unnoticed until last
week, when a
petition
on Change.org launched by Cape Town resident Elan Burman helped bring
attention to it. Signed by more than 156,000 people, the petition is
calling on the South African government to deny Bachman future entry
into the country. The hunt reportedly took place on a legal safari near
the town of Musina.
Nevertheless, upon seeing the photo, many incensed Twitter users lost
all sense of civility. (Fair warning: the following tweets contain
explicit content.)
laksmi
@dudatanure
Follow
@DjDane73 @MelissaBachman i would be The first one to shoot at her! You are discusting Melissa praying that God Will make u Pay in THis life
Luke;
@LukeSinden
Follow
@MelissaBachman you're a fucking vile human being who serves no purpose on this planet, and to top it off, you're ugly too.
As the backlash ensued, Bachman appeared to temporarily take her
Twitter account private, protecting her tweets form public view. But the
account has since been made public again. Bachman hasn’t tweeted since
the brouhaha began, nor has she responded publicly.
As of Monday afternoon, Bachman’s official Facebook page appeared to
have been either deleted or made private. In the meantime, dueling
Facebook pages both supporting and condemning the hunter have since
popped up in its place. “
Stop Melissa Bachman,” created on Thursday, has attracted more than 105,000 likes, while a page called “
Show Support for Melissa Bachman and Resist Anti-Hunting Abuse,” created in October 2012, has attracted just over 10,600 likes.
Bachman reportedly shot the lion on South Africa’s Maroi Conservancy. On its
Facebook page
Saturday, the conservancy said it has been receiving hate mail from
around the world in response to Bachman’s high-profile hunt, which it
defended vigorously:
“We do ethical hunting and all meat from animals hunted
is distributed to the local community. Funds generated from hunting goes
towards fixing the border fence that was washed away in the 2013
floods; combating poaching which is excessive in this area due to close
proximity to Zimbabwe and running a sustainable conservancy. We have
lost 2 eland, 4 giraffes and numerous other animals in the past 2 months
that were killed by spears and dogs. We control our game numbers to
prevent starvation of animals.”
Bachman is no stranger to criticism. In August 2012, the National
Geographic Channel dropped her from a planned appearance on the reality
show “Ultimate Survivor Alaska” in response to fierce blowback from
animal-rights advocates who deemed her a “heartless trophy hunter.”
