Everyone's talking about Tiger King but not about its most important insight

Netflix’s docuseries Tiger King has become the breakout hit of these dark times. Compulsory viewing for those stuck at home and seeking escape. Everyone's talking about the crazy characters, the plot twists and turns and, yes, the travesty that is the big cat trade in the US. But what worries me is what no one is talking about: the link it shows between animal abuse and violence towards women.

Joe Exotic, aka the Tiger King, titular protagonist of the popular Netflix series. Credit: Netflix

Carole Baskin, the woman who tried to shut down the private zoo owned by Joe Exotic, the self-styled Tiger King, was a victim. Joe Exotic was a dangerous man, with access to weapons and violent tendencies, who made consistent threats to her life and her safety. The silence around the violence exposed in this docuseries – both towards animals and women - suggests to me that there is still a pervasive acceptance of violence in our society, especially towards women who men consider "deserve it".

It's something that as a woman in the animal protection movement I know about firsthand. I’ve received threats too. During my political election campaign I received messages from shooters telling me they had taken my corflute for "practice". I’ve received death threats, been followed home, chased down and hit by a car, yelled at, and threatened with sexual violence. I have spoken to the police. The reactions range from chuckling, to a stark warning, “You should stop doing what you do. It won’t be long before an animal advocate will get killed.”

Carole Baskin as she appears in Tiger King. Credit: Netflix

I know my life is at risk. But telling me to stop protecting animals is no different to telling a woman not to wear a short skirt, or to tell her she "deserved" it because she was alone at night. No. Just no.

Emma Hurst is a NSW parliamentarian.Credit: James Brickwood

From #MeToo to #YesAllWomen, solidarity campaigns have highlighted sexual harassment and violence towards women and demanded equality. But I am yet to see anyone calling out Joe Exotic for his abuse towards Carole Baskin. Instead I‘ve seen calls for his release from prison, and "cute" memes that paint this vicious human as some kind of quirky misfit.

Let me put this bluntly - he is not quirky because he has a bad haircut. He is a violent man who used and abused animals for profit, and who planned to kill a woman who wanted to protect those animals.

Exotic’s behaviour is the perfect example of what psychologists call "the link" – a correlation found in copious research that highlights a glaringly obvious fact: violence does not discriminate. Those who harm animals are likely to also harm people. David Bekowitz, Jeffrey Dahmer and Edmund Kemper are all serial killers – and they all abused animals. The research is conclusive to the point that the National Counterterrorism Centre, Department of Homeland Security, and the FBI consider animal cruelty charges useful in identifying an accelerated and increased risk of violence.

People who are violent are violent. The act of violence is the same regardless of the victim be it a woman, child, an elderly person or an animal. If we continue to downplay violence toward animals, or find entertainment in a docuseries about violence towards women and animals, instead of calling out the abuse, then we permit violence. We accept it as part of the fabric of our society.

I don’t accept it. I will continue to stand up and speak on behalf of animals who need protection. I will continue to stand by victims like Baskin and any other woman who has been the victim of violence. When we stand against all forms of violence, we change a society. Tiger King offered us all a chance to stand up against violence. So far, as a society, we have failed.

Emma Hurst is a NSW MP representing the Animal Justice Party in the Legislative Council.