Japan Dolphin's Day 2013

Sir Winston Church Hill Square in Edmonton's downtown core was once again host for this years protest against Taiji, Japan's annual 'dolphin drive hunt', occurring every year from Sept. 1st - end of March. We were just one of over a hundred other protests happening in unison, in five different continents and numerous cities from around the world, all with the same goal, of letting the world know once again, about the continued massacre of innocent dolphins and whales in the small Southern coastal town of Taiji.  For those unaware, Taiji, Japan has been in the spotlight since 2003 when two activists from the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, Alex Cornelissen and Allison Lance dove into the water of the now 'infamous' Cove, and cut the nets releasing 15 dolphins that had been held captive. For their part in this matter, both Alex and Alison were arrested and spent 23 days in a Japanese prison before being released. Since this time, there have been numerous activists from around the world who have flooded to Taiji to take part in a campaign to help end the dolphin slaughter. There has also been a documentary made by director Louie Psihoyos entitled "The Cove", (Free Link http://www.putlocker.com/file/33A3CA931BAC1CF5#) which won the 2010 Academy Award for best documentary as it showcases the atrocities and exploitation being committed against these innocent citizens of the sea by a small group of fisherman.

This year's protest consisted of fifteen or so dedicated individuals who care deeply about this issue. We may have been a small group compared to many other protests, however, we certainly made a difference in my opinion on bringing attention to this issue through just our mere presence alone. We had people come up to us from coffee shops and as they were passing by asking us what we were protesting. It's great to be able to answer questions and educate others who are unaware of this issue facing dolphins. Especially here in Edmonton where it's a very right wing conservative, oil driven community that cares deeply about economic growth, but lacks concern for their environment. Obviously there are people in this city who care about the environment and all it's beings and dedicate their time to help. But as a whole, this city really does have a blatant disregard for their natural surroundings and the animals who are part of it. The 'tar sands' is only a five hour drive northeast of the city, so being a tree-hugger and advocating for animal rights and the environment in 'oil country', definitely has it's fair share of challenges.

I can't tell you how many times I've been at the grocery store or at a mall waiting in line to pay, and people ask me about sea shepherd because of the shirt on my back, and I always talk about the 'plight of the dolphins' in Taiji, and yet nobody seems to know what's going on. The' Cove' has been out for almost four years now, and people here have never heard of it. It's astonishing to me, and also a realization that protests on the regular are needed here to help educate, and also to bring awareness on the issue of captivity and swim with the dolphin programs and what they can do to help.

I would like to thank all the dedicated and compassionate individuals who came out to this years protest. I know that each and everyone of them will be at the next one.

"You may never know what results come of your actions, but if you do nothing there will be no results." - Mahatma Gandhi

Thanks for taking the time to read my blog.

Damian

Below is a link to a video interview I did with Doug Brinkman of 'Civil Information Activism'. (CIActivist.org) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wsskvn1JaqY