Laura Anderson
A majority of the general public are unaware of the impact whales have on our planet, turning a blindeye to the atrocious acts that whalers have inflicted upon the majestic creatures of our oceans. It is time to educate ourselves about the planet’s whales and take a stand against whaling.
How would you feel if I told you that 2,000 whales are likely to be hunted in the following year? Within minutes, 2,000 of some of the world’s most beautiful creatures are to be ruthlessly slaughtered in their oceans. Herded to the beaches by small motorboats, dragged upon land as they call out in distress, surrounded by butcherers who leave them to die surrounded by a pool of their own blood, alone. Whaling is a plague upon our society; after the 1986 international agreement to ban all commercial whaling, three countries continue to flout rules and put these endangered animal’s lives on the line, pushing them quickly towards extinction. Our planet needs these whales, and at this moment of time, the whales need us.
Whaling was an ancient tradition of many countries, back when women didn’t have the right to vote and homosexualty was considered an illness; yet, as society changed and we began to embrace the more modern world, many countries are still trapped in the medieval times. To this day, whaling continues in countries like Iceland, Japan and Norway, and even remote governed islands like the Faroe Islands. In the past year, Iceland has murdered a total of 155 endangered fin whales and 39 minke whales, while as many as 250 were slaughtered in the Faroe Islands alone.
These killings are brutal, inhumane and cruel, as many people chase the whimsical whales towards the dry beaches, forcing them out of their homes, and violently dragging them towards their death. They are butchered and massacred upon land, the blood of these gentle giants turning the white sand crimson. Are you really going to stand there, and become a bystander of these crimes, while these whales are killed within their own homes?
What is worse, is these heinous acts are often excused under the labels of “scientific” whaling or tradition. Yet many of the whales who are hunted for “scientific” purposes end up in restaurants rather than laboratories, and tradition is a lazy excuse to kill these wondrous creatures. We are no longer living in the past, we are here in 2021 where things must change if we want to save our animals and our planet.
We are living in a modern world where many are more aware of the destruction of our planet that our past generations have caused. Yet few are aware of the astounding acts and impact that our whales have. Surprisingly, their faeces could be one of the biggest combatters against pollution in our atmosphere! Their secretions contain a microscopic organism known as phytoplankton. These phytoplankton are some of the biggest oxygen producers next to the amazon rainforest, removing thousands of tons of carbon from our atmosphere each year. These marvelous little creatures which are brought to the surface by whales produce around half of the oxygen that we breathe, and many scientists have predicted that if it wasn’t for whaling, these animals may have removed 2,000,000 tons of carbon to date. Yet as these whales provide the oxygen we breathe, and balance the food chain of the watery depths of the oceans that we adore, we repay them in brutal slaughter. This is unfair, and must end now.
So, what can you do? You may be small in comparison to the world, yet you can have a great impact, like the phytoplankton! Therefore, I urge you to speak your mind, and have your voice heard so that others can hear of these cruel and heinous people who take part in or support the gruesome slaughter of these majestic and gentle creatures. Write a letter to those of higher standings, protest, and raise the awareness! Donate to amazing charities like SaveTheWhale.org! Together we can save our whales and prevent them from becoming a piece in a museum for our future generations to see. Stand by the whales, stand by your planet.
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