Yahoo! Japan profits from the endangered species trade, selling whales and dolphin meat.
If we can get Yahoo! to stop these sales, we can strike a serious blow to the whaling industry, saving the lives of thousands of whales each year.
Every year Japanese whalers brutally slaughter thousands of whales and dolphins -- and Yahoo! is profiting off the whole operation.
Yahoo! sells hundreds of different whale and dolphin products, including those from protected, endangered species. But instead of abiding by international agreements that ban whaling, Japanese “science” ships harpoon hundreds of whales and drag them onto boats to die. Dolphins are corralled into coves and stabbed to death by the thousands.
A new report reveals that the industry is already under enormous pressure from declining demand. Yahoo! has no business keeping this cruel industry afloat, and a massive international outcry could convince the multinational internet conglomerate to pull its support from the online store -- striking a serious, and potentially fatal, blow to Japanese whaling.
Tell Yahoo! it’s time to stop profiting from the slaughter of whales and dolphins.
For years, Japan has skirted strict bans on commercial whaling -- particularly those of protected species -- by claiming that it needs to “research” whales. The nation carries out its research by harpooning whales, taking them back to the country and selling their meat commercially.
Even then, much of the meat goes uneaten. There are currently over 5,000 tons of unsold whale meat sitting in storage throughout Japan.
The whale hunts are only profitable due to government subsidies, and whale meat is starting to fall out of favor in Japan, in part due to the dangerously high levels of mercury found in many products. By shutting down Yahoo! Japan’s sales, we would further isolate the product, and make it even more difficult to move -- stifling the whale hunts and saving hundreds of the creatures each year. Yahoo! Japan may tolerate the practice, but thousands of consumers around the world oppose it.
Tell Yahoo! to end the sale of whale and dolphin products today.
Thank you,
Claiborne and the rest of us
P.S. Want to do more? Share this campaign on Facebook or forward this post to your friends and family.
**********
More reading:
ABC 7: I-Team investigates Japanese whale and dolphin slaughter, 07 November, 2012
Sydney Morning Herald: Yahoo! linked to whale meat sales, 08 June, 2012
SumOfUs is a world-wide movement of people like you, working together to hold corporations accountable for their actions and forge a new, sustainable path for our global economy. You can follow us on Twitter, and like us on Facebook.