Hillary Clinton surprised attendees at the Tribeca Film Festival on Saturday. She stopped by a panel for the film The Protectors: Walk in the Ranger’s Shoes.
The short film, a documentary by director Kathryn Bigelow (Hurt Locker, Zero Dark Thirty), demonstrates the dangers of elephant poaching. It is shot as a virtual reality experience that showcases a day in the life as a ranger in the Democratic Republic of Congo, who must save elephants from the ivory trade.
Clinton fought elephant poaching practices both as Secretary of State and through her Clinton Global Initiative Foundation.
On the panel, Clinton said that,
“We’ve got to bust this market so it can’t come back.”
She also explained,
“I’m very proud that under President Obama, the United States passed a near federal ban on the transportation and interstate trafficking of ivory in our own country. The Obama administration had three overriding goals: Stop the killing, stop the trafficking, and stop the demand… And part of that is protecting these rangers.”
Clinton encouraged viewers who want to help the cause to donate to Outfitaranger.org. The site provides rangers with better apparel and equipment to fight for this cause.
Rolling Stone reports that the film premieres on May 1 on the VR app ‘Within’, and on YouTube and Facebook360 the following week.
