RoyalCanadian
A Proud DVC Member @ SSR
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- Jan 10, 2004
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Perhaps one should consider the impact of the seal hunt protest on those who stand to lose the most should your protests succeed -- the Canadian Inuit. This article was written by Joe Kusugak and recently published in the National Post.
As president of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, the national organization representing Inuit in Canada -- as well as a lifelong Beatles fan -- it saddens me to denounce Paul McCartney's campaign against Canada's sealing industry and traditions.
History appears to be repeating itself. Inuit (formerly referred to as Eskimos) have experienced the damage done to their livelihood by similar ill-considered actions by film star Brigitte Bardot in the 1970s. The goal was to shut down the East Coast seal hunt for harp and hooded seals. The effect was the decimation of the Inuit economy because ringed seals, which Inuit hunt, were most affected, and the price for their pelts plummeted.
The ban forbidding the importation into the European Economic Community of seal pelts and products made with seal pelts was first enacted in 1983 by the Council of the European Economic Community in Luxembourg. It was extended in 1985.
Despite this, the demand for seal pelts has since rebounded. Today, a good quality pelt can sell for as much as $90. For Inuit hunters in the Arctic, this is a valuable source of income to support a sustainable way of life. By vilifying sealing, Paul McCartney threatens that way of life.
Inuit across Arctic Canada, like Inuit in Greenland, Alaska and Russia, continue to hunt and use seals and other marine and terrestrial mammals on a daily basis for dietary, cultural and economic purposes. A majority of the diet for Inuit families across Arctic Canada consists of foods harvested from the land and sea, and are preferred over expensive, less healthy processed food products imported from the south. Ringed seals are abundant year round in the Arctic and are a key food source for Inuit.
In the eyes of Inuit, it was embarrassing to see Paul McCartney on the ice with a seal pup, treating it like a pet in front of the media. Playing with wild animals in this manner is not something we would do. It's sad that a person of McCartney's stature would be taken in by the propaganda of the animal rights industry.
There are two sides to every story. As an artist, Paul must know this. I support the invitation extended by Aqqaluk Lynge, president of Inuit Circumpolar Conference Greenland, to visit our Arctic ice floes and to observe our traditional hunting practices. McCartney would gain a different perspective on the sealing issue, one that has not received as much attention as the one sensationalized by animal rights advocates, much to our detriment.
As president of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, the national organization representing Inuit in Canada -- as well as a lifelong Beatles fan -- it saddens me to denounce Paul McCartney's campaign against Canada's sealing industry and traditions.
History appears to be repeating itself. Inuit (formerly referred to as Eskimos) have experienced the damage done to their livelihood by similar ill-considered actions by film star Brigitte Bardot in the 1970s. The goal was to shut down the East Coast seal hunt for harp and hooded seals. The effect was the decimation of the Inuit economy because ringed seals, which Inuit hunt, were most affected, and the price for their pelts plummeted.
The ban forbidding the importation into the European Economic Community of seal pelts and products made with seal pelts was first enacted in 1983 by the Council of the European Economic Community in Luxembourg. It was extended in 1985.
Despite this, the demand for seal pelts has since rebounded. Today, a good quality pelt can sell for as much as $90. For Inuit hunters in the Arctic, this is a valuable source of income to support a sustainable way of life. By vilifying sealing, Paul McCartney threatens that way of life.
Inuit across Arctic Canada, like Inuit in Greenland, Alaska and Russia, continue to hunt and use seals and other marine and terrestrial mammals on a daily basis for dietary, cultural and economic purposes. A majority of the diet for Inuit families across Arctic Canada consists of foods harvested from the land and sea, and are preferred over expensive, less healthy processed food products imported from the south. Ringed seals are abundant year round in the Arctic and are a key food source for Inuit.
In the eyes of Inuit, it was embarrassing to see Paul McCartney on the ice with a seal pup, treating it like a pet in front of the media. Playing with wild animals in this manner is not something we would do. It's sad that a person of McCartney's stature would be taken in by the propaganda of the animal rights industry.
There are two sides to every story. As an artist, Paul must know this. I support the invitation extended by Aqqaluk Lynge, president of Inuit Circumpolar Conference Greenland, to visit our Arctic ice floes and to observe our traditional hunting practices. McCartney would gain a different perspective on the sealing issue, one that has not received as much attention as the one sensationalized by animal rights advocates, much to our detriment.
-- especially when one clicks through to see all the restaurants that are supporting the HSUS boycott of Canadian seafood. One would then wonder why one can then read their respective menus online and discover lots of lovely seafood dishes -- some of it proudly advertised as being made with Canadian seafood from Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia. Have to love those boycott free mussels from Prince Edward Island; Malpeque oysters and scallops from Digby, Nova Scotia.
By the looks of the boycott participating restaurant it seems to be great for the Canadian seafood business.
