Action Alerts

DEMAND U.S. FISHERIES REVOKE MAKAH WHALING RIGHTS

Dear Activists:

The Washington State
Indian Tribe known as the "Makah" have brutally and ILLEGALLY killed a gray whale. This despicable act took place without the necessary permit from the National Marine Fisheries Service and in direct violation of the Marine Mammal Protection Act. The Makah Treaty of 1855, preserves the Indian Tribe's right to whale, however, after killing a female, juvenile gray whale in 1999, the Makah have been in the midst of court challenges brought by animal rights groups. The U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals twice ruled the tribe must procure an 'exception' from the MMPA, before being allowed to legally continue whaling. On Saturday, September 8th, 2007, the Makah broke U.S. federal laws by attacking [harpooning and shooting] a gray whale without the necessary federal authority to do so.

Please email, call or fax NOAA officials demanding that the 5 Makah tribesmen involved in the slaughter be fined and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law; demand that in light of the flagrant and contemptuous nature of the act, the Makah Treaty of
1855 be permanently rescinded.

TAKE ACTION:

PLEASE WRITE/CALL OR FAX NATIONAL MARINE FISHERIES OFFICIALS AND DEMAND THAT MAKAH WHALING RIGHTS BE PERMANENTLY REVOKED!

SAMPLE LETTER:

Madame/Sirs:

Giving the Makah Tribe the exclusive right to hunt whales [under the
1855 Treaty] should be immediately and permanently withdrawn. The Makah have shown an ongoing contempt for not only the federal laws which the rest of U.S. society must abide by; but have proven themselves ethically and environmentally incapable of exercising responsible judgment in connection to a 'privilege' which should have been eliminated decades ago. Overall, whale populations are being depleted at an alarming rate. Disease, pollution, global warming, dwindling food sources, sonar disturbances and rogue whaling worldwide, have all taken a devastating toll on a species capable of producing only one calf per female, per year. No ONE group should be exempt from the global responsibility we ALL share for ensuring the continued survival of our whales.

While undoubtedly there are political implications to be considered in revoking Makah whaling rights under the 1855 Treaty; there are numerous concessions which can be made which are of GREATER economic and educational benefit to the Makah people. It is time to consider such possibilities. The Makah no longer fit the description of a group which hunts for 'subsistence' or true 'cultural' reasons...regardless of what the tribe would have the world believe. One need look no further for evidence of this than the hunt of 1999, in which the Makah availed themselves of cell phones, Coast Guard cutters, .50 caliber rifles / machine guns, "spotters" via helicopters and every MODERN convenience possible, to track and kill their prey. It is blasphemous to call such a travesty the continuation of "Makah culture". The majority of the American public and indeed the international community, want an end to the slow, barbaric deaths of cetaceans by such primitive and repulsive means as whaling. It is an obscenity which has no place in a compassionate world of people with a moral conscience.

Sincerely,

---

Contact:
NATIONAL MARINE FISHERIES SERVICE 

Environmental Liaison:
Rachel.O'Malley@ noaa.gov
State/Federal Fisheries Team
Tom.Meyer@noaa.gov 
Tel: 301-713-2334 x173
Fax: 301-713-0956

Steve.Meyers@noaa.gov
Tel: 301-713-2334 x174
Fax: 301-713-0596

END WHALING--NOW! [Petition]

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/194508729 

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