By Katherine Groff
On Sept. 20, animal advocates gathered outside Japanese embassies worldwide to protest the annual slaughter of tens of thousands of dolphins and small whales.
The Humane Society of the United States, Humane Society International, the Animal Welfare Institute, and many other concerned individuals made their presence, and message, known outside of the Japanese Embassy in Washington. A crowd of 40 people, some wearing dolphin hats and others holding signs, chanted "Stop the dolphin slaughter!" and "Shame on Japan!"
In drive fisheries, dolphins are herded from the open ocean into shore and stabbed to death or sold for display.
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| Banner at protest. (HSUS) |
"I'm protesting their dolphin kill. It's certainly inhuman the way it is done," Lee Talbot, Ph.D. said at the protest. Talbot is the author of the Marine Mammals Protection Act. "Dolphins are highly intelligent. To treat them the way this fishery treats them is simply, totally barbaric."
Protesters raised their voices in 32 cities worldwide, including Melbourne, Australia, and London. They sent a clear message on behalf of dolphins: The world is watching, and we are outraged that Japan allows these massacres to continue.
