Here are a few actual FACTS about the Native peoples here in Canada who take part in the seal hunt that I learned when I was studying about them in University. It's just to clarify a few things so that people here have knowledge of what it actually going on before they jump on the Canada-bashing bandwagon:
- the seal hunt in the north-eastern part of Canada is not treated as a "sport" here. It never has nor will it ever will be. It is not a "game" type of activity like the snake "Whacking Day" is in The Simpsons. It is exactly what it's name describes it as, it's a hunt, just like how fisherman hunt fish or just as big-game hunters hunt animals like deer/moose/elk/bear/ducks/tigers, just has our nomadic ancestors hunted various animals for thier for hundreds of years. Please do NOT imply/accuse that Canada looks at it as a sport. Those were YOUR words. We don't look at it that way. In Canada, our sport is hockey.
- the seal hunt has been the source of much political discussion and controversy here in Canada for the past few decades. The federal government here in Canada has been, for the last few years at least, imposing a quota (i.e. a limit) on how many seal can be hunted. They have gradually been making that number smaller (this year they reduced it by something like 10-20%). Granted they could, and should be doing much more; but it's something at least.
- Native peoples in that part of Canada have, for hundreds of years (i.e. even before the arrival of Europeans) have hunted seals for the purpose of food as well as to be able to trade their pelts. The only people who participate in this seal hunt are the Native peoples who live in those areas of Canada. It is not like "deer hunting" or "duck hunting" season where anyone can get a license and participate in it. The hunters are all registered with government officials and anyone caught who isn't registered is arrested and prosecuted (of course the news services do a REALLY good job at making sure THOSE instances are never reported/made known to the public :disappoin ). While the government talks a lot about it and while they HAVE been taking small steps to help curb the hunt, they (like all governments) are NOT willing to take the bigger, more progressive steps to really put a stop to it.
- For these Native peoples that participate in the seal hunt, for many of them it is the ONLY source of income that they have. It is a tradition. More importantly, nowadays it has become an absolute necessity for them. The areas of land in which they live are so barren/desolate not good for farming nor for raising animals. They are close to the ocean, but since they're so far north they cannot make a decent living as fisherman because of the thick ice buildup. The weather there is very harsh, meaning that they have never been a good tourist spot. They live in the middle of nowhere so their are no big factories or other major industrial infrastructure so they don't have those options, meaning they cannot go find "9-5" jobs like the rest of us. There are NO places like Walmart, no McDonalds, no Home Depots where they live (unless you're willing to travel 2-3 hours) so they can't get those types of jobs like your average high-school/university student can get. Most, if not all of them cannot afford to go to university/college so they can't get "better" careers.
- Seal pelts fetch a very high price amongst the high fashion industry. For many of them, they can earn enough money to be able to survive (i.e. buy the essentials like food/clothing which you or I would take for granted) for the year until the next seal hunt the following year. A lot of their food and supplies often have to be flown in from more metropolitan areas, and thus, cost much more (e.g. a jug of milk which would cost $2-$3 for you or me can cost them nearly $10. A whole uncooked chicken which would cost you or me $15 can cost them $25-$30).
- The general consensus here amongst most Canadians is that the seal hunt should be stopped, period. However, what about those Native peoples for whom this is their only source of income? For many of them, it's their only method of survival. In terms of "what can we do" to help stop it, the simplest answer is, "Find an alternative source of income for them that is practical so that they DON'T have to hunt the seals. Find a way to keep these families from starving and going into poverty". And no, welfare is not, has never been considered an option. Remember that because of the circumstances of where they live and the fact that they have nearly next to no infrastructure/resources (I mean, some of them don't even have hot running water for ****'s sake), they're choices are extremely limited. These people live either in small villages (no more than 100-200 people) or they live out in the middle of nowhere, where their closest neighbour is an hour or two away.
All I'm saying here is that the seal hunt issue has never been JUST about the seals. It's also about the people who participate in it and who rely on it for their livelihood. Switch "seal hunt" with "fisherman", and see if you can be so quick to judge and condemn? Big-name celebs who have been long-time activists against the seal hunt always talk about the seals, but they never take into consideration how it would affect the people who take part in it. Those people who participate in the seal hunt have just as much right to live and survive as those seals. If you want to take away their livelihood, you need to be able to provide an alternative for them, otherwise you're just going to leave them to starve and die out there.
If you want to do something, then do more research, not just into the seals but into the people behind it too. There are multiple facets to this problem/issue. Make yourselves knowledgable about ALL of them before you speak out against it. Saying "I don't know too much" isn't good enough. Do the research. LEARN about it. Learn as much as you can about EVERYTHING and EVERYONE involved before you prejudge.
For the record I'm Canadian and I'm opposed to to the hunt.
