If you’ve never been to Griffith Park in Los Angeles, you still likely know Griffith Park. With just over 4,000 acres, Griffith Park is one of the largest municipal parks with urban wilderness in the country. Covering less than 10 square miles, the park is home to major Californian (and American) landmarks, including the Hollywood sign, the Los Angeles Zoo, and Griffith Observatory. The latter was made most famous by James Dean’s mesmerizing 1955 performance in Rebel without a Cause. The park itself stands for LA, and Angelenos make good use of this beautiful space in the middle of their city.

On any given day, Griffith Park is teeming with people: running, horseback riding, picnicking, celebrating birthdays, and in general, enjoying 365 days of warm California sunshine. It’s estimated that 10 million people visit Griffith Park annually. On a Saturday in mid-October, when I visited the park, there was something even more special to celebrate.

The National Wildlife Federation and #SaveLACougars have hosted the Annual P-22 Day Festival for the last 9 years. P-22 is the world-famous mountain lion that lived in Griffith Park from around 2012 (when he was first captured by a trail camera) until he was humanely euthanized due to severe injuries and chronic pain on December 17, 2022 by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. His story is extraordinary because he lived for a decade in an area about 10 times smaller than most mountain lion territories, and because he had to brave two notoriously busy highways to make it there.

For 10 years, P-22 was Hollywood’s Cat, and Angelenos loved him. They loved the idea that a mountain lion, a species known for their elusive nature, coexisted with them in this park that they also loved. In choosing Griffith Park, and braving the journey to get there, it was like P-22 chose them. And in every respect, he did.

The Annual P-22 Day Festival is a tribute to the legacy of Hollywood’s Cat. It’s a celebration of people, music, food, wilderness, animals, advocacy, ingenuity, and community. It’s an occasion to swap stories about P-22 sightings back in the day. It’s a reason to remember the mountain lion’s stirring 2023 memorial at the Greek Theatre (another iconic California landmark). It’s an opportunity to connect with people from across the state who share a love of wildlife and wild places.

And it is perhaps, most poignantly, a glimpse into how American cities could be if coexistence was adopted as a core value and wildlife was celebrated, respected, and understood on their own terms.

While other states are passing laws that increase recreational hunting of apex carnivores like mountain lions, bears, wolves, and coyotes, I’m proud to live in the only state that has chosen to protect our mountain lions from recreational hunting. I’m proud that Californians understand the innate value in protecting as much wilderness as we can and the animals that call those places home.

I’m so grateful that the world opened our hearts to P-22 and rooted for this underdog in the cat world. We have chosen to remember him and more importantly, we’ve chosen to use his legacy to propel us toward something better together.

#P22Forever