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On May 17, 1999 The Makah Indians of Neah Bay bloodied the territorial waters of the United States when they successfully hunted a 3 year old juvenile gray whale, ending a 75 year absence from their whaling tradition. The break was one which they voluntarily took when the gray whale population was so decimated by world wide whaling ventures.


It is a sad commentary when an entire culture feels that returning to abandoned traditions will bring back a sense of pride. Have we so badly treated this culture that they have been forced into drugs and alcoholism? That is sad indeed. No culture should be so suppressed!

Altho I disagree with killing any creature for any reason, I am beginning to understand the position of these proud people.

In a letter published in a Washington newspaper, the Tribal Elders speak out.

We are elders of the Makah Indian Nation (Ko-Ditch-ee-ot) which means People of the Cape. We oppose this Whale hunt our tribe is going to do.

The opposition is directly against our leaders, the Makah Tribal Council, Tribal Staff, and the Bureau of Indian Affairs, which is an arm of the United States Government.

The Makah Indian Nation has been functioning without a quorum; two Councilmen are off on sick leave for very serious reasons, cancer.

How can any decision be legal when our by-laws state the Treasurer shall be present at every meeting? The Vice Chairman is the other man out.

The Whale hunt issue has never been brought to the people to inform them and there is no spiritual training going on. We believe they, the Council, will just shoot the Whale, and we think the word "subsistence" is the wrong thing to say when our people haven't used or had Whale meat/blubber since the early 1900's.

For these reasons we believe the hunt is only for the money. They can't say "Traditional, Spiritual and for Subsistence" in the same breath when no training is going on, just talk.:

Whale watching is an alternative we support.

Isabell Ides. Age 96 Harry Claplonhoo. Age 78 Margaret Irving. Age 80 Ruth Claplanhoo. Age 94 Viola Johnson. Age 88 Alberta N Thompson. Age 72 Lena McGee. Age 92.

Many of these Elders have changed their minds about the hunt. The opposition in the beginning was due to the fact that during the 70+ year gap in the hunting tradition, none of the children or grandchildren had been trained in the ways of hunting. Like any mother, father, grandmother or grandfather, they feared for the safety of their children. Though the children were grown men, fears for their safety was the determining factor in opposing the hunt. This is an understandable view for anyone who has loved ones facing danger....and a dying whale can be very dangerous indeed.
Comments or suggestions welcome