U7 Part4 B

Over 1000 people have demonstrated in Madrid to go for an end to bullfighting in Spain. Though small, the protest comes amid renewed debate in the country about bullfighting, which many see as inhumane but others consider an integral part of Spanish culture.
    Carrying banners reading “Abolish bullfighting” and comments disparaging bullfighters, the coalition of animal rights activists and ecologists gathered in Madrid’s central Puerta del Sol square. The Madrid regional government’s decision to officially declare the sport part of Spain’s cultural heritage has intensified opposition:
    Male protestor (voice of translator):
    “I feel very ashamed. I feel ashamed of being Spanish when I hear of these crimes, and people say this torture is culture. For me it is savage, more appropriate to other centuries.”
The centuries-old spectacle, whose ritual includes implanting barbed sticks into the bull before a matador kills it with a sword, draws thousands to the country’s bullrings and, matadors receive celebrity media coverage. Many Spaniards reject accusations of cruelty. 
    Madrid resident (in Spanish) .
    This Madrid resident insists those who want to watch bullfighting should be allowed to continue doing so, as it is part of the nation’s culture. 
    But support for bullfighting varies across the country, with parliament in the autonomous Catalan region recently debating a possible ban, and a vote there on the issue is expected soon. In Spain’s Canary Islands, the sport is already outlawed.