Written by PETA
What was the grooviest thing about having hippie parents? Growing up listening to Donovan. Seriously, my mother almost named me "Jennifer Juniper." Instead she went for something more mainstream—Skylark.
And I'm sure he hears it all the time, but I'm not exaggerating when I say that I'm Donovan's biggest fan. Star-struck? Yes, consider me struck. What's even more striking is that this folk/pop legend lent his anti–seal slaughter anthem "Celia of the Seals" to this heart-wrenching new video:
Here's what the "Sunshine Superman" had to say about his song and putting an end to the war on baby seals:
"I wrote this song to show what's going on. And the song is influenced by Celia Hammond, the great 60s model who is such a Green Goddess for all the creatures of the Earth. Shortly after I released 'Celia of the Seals' back in the 70s, I was glad to see a reduced demand for seal products worldwide. It's now disappointing to see that the Canadian government is doing everything it can to prop up this dying, violent industry, including challenging the EU's recent compassionate decision to ban seal pelts. Instead of trying to salvage this cruel slaughter, the government should listen to the court of public opinion and ban the massacre on ice."
Celia of the Seals, we know just how you feel. So for the love of Donovan, help us get the word out by showing this video to everyone you know!
Written by Amy Skylark Elizabeth
In yet another one of Canada's attempts to get the media hyped about its bloody seal slaughter, Fisheries Minister Gail Shea just announced an "extension" of the slaughter through the end of May after sealers bemoaned the lack of opportunities to engage in their bloody business.
The funny thing is under Canada's Marine Mammal Regulations Canadian sealers have been allowed to bludgeon or shoot hundreds of thousands of young seals to death until June 15.
Ms. Shea is a veteran when it comes to attempting to put a positive spin on this ugly massacre—she refers to seals as "market opportunities" to be "harvested," so it's little surprise that she's trying to appease sealers and the public with manufactured assistance.
As PETA Senior Vice President Dan Mathews put it, "This is just another desperate attempt to save the dying commercial seal slaughter. The politicians from all the major federal parties are so desperate for the eight seats in the House of Commons that represent sealing communities that they'll do anything to show voters that they are supporting all business endeavors—even the hideous seal slaughter—despite the fact that it costs the government millions."
Of course, it's easy enough to ignore the political maneuvering by turning your back on travel and spreading the word far and wide.
Written by Jennifer O'Connor
PETA Germany took the fight for Canadian seals to Berlin on Saturday, bringing Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper's motorcade to a halt when a "seal" ran in front of the procession. Three police officers hauled the demonstrator off, but not before reporters—and presumably the P.M. himself—saw the "seal." "Seals" have been trailing Harper all over the world on behalf of PETA and its affiliates.
Later, the same "seal" stood outside the Bundeskanzleramt (where Harper was meeting with Chancellor Angela Merkel), made sure Harper spotted him in the wings when the convoy arrived, and then—not done yet!—moved on to the Canadian Embassy, where he and another activist distributed nearly 1,200 leaflets.
Berliners, Canadians, Americans, and anyone anywhere with a conscience: Let Prime Minister Harper know that the pressure won't let up until the massive slaughter is brought to an end.
Canada has a lot to answer for. Twenty years of Celine Dion albums, for one thing. Howie Mandel. Poutine.
OK, those things are just a matter of taste, but then there's the annual seal slaughter. During the commercial slaughter—the largest massacre of marine mammals on Earth—tens of thousands of seals have their heads bashed in or are shot for their fur. Vile!
So PETA is launching the latest volley in the seal wars: a graphic video showing tourists exactly why they should "explore elsewhere":
We will debut the spot in Winnipeg outside Rendez-vous Canada, an annual event that hosts international buyers and travel trade media, and will be airing it around the world in cities in which Canada markets itself most heavily to tourists. Our commercial is in stark contrast to the cuddly seal who is shown playfully jumping on top of a tourist's kayak in an ad run by the Canadian Tourism Commission, and it should encourage the public to choose other vacation destinations until the seal slaughter stops.
You can help us get the word out by showing the video to all your friends. Then leave a comment telling us where you'll be vacationing this year—besides Canada.
Written by Paula Moore
Barely stopping to catch her breath after a sizzling Argentine tango on Dancing With The Stars (DWTS), Pamela Anderson—accompanied by her dance partner, Damian Whitewood—headed to the Canadian Consulate in Los Angeles today to hand-deliver her letter to Gary Doer, the Canadian ambassador to the U.S., detailing her concern that the Canadian government is subsidizing the seal slaughter.
Pamela has taken her fight for seals from one end of Canada to the other, but her personal appearance at the consulate is her first action in the U.S. regarding this issue. Just like when she dances, Pamela takes one step for animals and then takes 10 more. Do you really need any other reason to tune in to DWTS on Monday and cast your votes for her? Polls open at 8 p.m. EDT, and the phone and text lines stay open for 30 minutes after the end of the show. Online voting remains open until 11 a.m. EDT Tuesday. It only takes a few minutes to help vote this compassionate activist for animals to the top! Call 1-800-868-3411; text the word "vote" to 3411 if you're an AT&T mobile customer; or go online and vote for Pam six times.
There may not be many seals in the Sunshine State, but any who do venture that far south have a friend in U.S. Rep. Alcee Hastings. The senior Democratic whip is lobbing a virtual pie in the face of the Canadian government by introducing a resolution this week urging our neighbors to the north to ban the commercial seal slaughter.
Seal fur and other spoils of the slaughter are already banned in the U.S., and the Senate passed a similar resolution last year condemning Canada's annual baby seal massacre—but this is a first for the House.
Why not add your voice to Rep. Hastings' by urging Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper to make like a snowbird and retire the seal slaughter? (And don't forget to spread the word to your friends and family too.)
Written by Alisa Mullins
Sure, Apple banned our Be Nice to Bunnies app after catching a glimpse of sexy Stephanie Pratt in the buff, but PETA doesn't hold it against Steve Jobs. In fact, we think that Jobs and the rest of the Apple crew are pretty great after learning that the App Store said "no way" to an app called iSealClub—a game in which users wield a metal-tipped club and earn points by bashing seals to death.
We'll stand side-by-side with Apple in declaring that it's "objectionable" to make light of the bloody slaughter of tens of thousands of baby seals in Canada, and we're sending Apple CEO Steve Jobs a thank-you note along with some yummy vegan chocolate seals as a token of our appreciation.
People all over the world—including President Obama, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, the entire European Union (EU), and so many others—have condemned the seal hunt, and the market for dead animals' skins has tanked. It sounds like Canadian seal killers would be better off playing iPhone games than spending their time bludgeoning baby animals. In fact, I can direct them to a list of apps that could teach them a thing or two about compassion.
In a tweet feat of epic proportions, PETA nabbed the number two spot in USA Today's #AmericaWants hash tag contest on Twitter! The great news was announced in an ad that ran in yesterday's USA Today.
Kudos to all of you who tweeted in support of PETA's campaign to stop Canada's bludgeoning of baby seals. That includes the wonderful Pink, Pamela Anderson, Channing and Jenna Tatum, Perez Hilton, and Stephanie Pratt.
But this is no time to rest on our laurels: We have to keep the pressure on the Canadian government. Hurry—while your Twitter finger is still twitching, send a tweet to Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper letting him know that the tweeps have spoken and it's time to ban the seal slaughter.
Oh, sweet irony: Just weeks after Canadian Fisheries Minister Gail Shea gave the green light for sealers to kill an additional 50,000 seals, officials have announced that they will likely have to call off this year's massacre early because of a lack of buyers for seal fur! All that hard work by friends of seals is finally paying off.
PETA U.K. worked to push the European Union to ban products made from seals, and that ban, combined with the ever-increasing number of people who refuse to buy real fur, has dealt a crushing blow to the seal-fur industry. According to one sealer, "[T]here's no market for seal pelts this year." And according to one estimate, fewer than 15 percent of the projected number of seals will be bludgeoned to death this year!
Is the last gong sounding? Will Canadian officials stop the cruel and senseless seal slaughter forever? Let's keep the pressure on by writing to Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and demanding that he put an end to this dying event once and for all.
Written by Lindsay Pollard-Post
Tweeps, we need your help! USA Today has announced that it will donate a full-page ad (a $189,400 value) to the nonprofit organization that garners the most tweets on Twitter. If PETA wins, we will use the ad to call for an end to Canada's annual seal slaughter, which is happening right now and may result in some 388,200 seals being bludgeoned and killed on the ice this year. Imagine if just one tweet could save one seal.
The contest ends on Friday, April 16, so please tweet, retweet, and post our tweet on your Facebook pages ASAP. Just be sure to include "#AmericaWants @PETA to get a full-page ad in USA TODAY" in your tweet so your vote will count. If you haven't yet joined the "flock," please sign up for a Twitter account now so that you can make your voice heard. A tweet for PETA is a tweet for seals!
If you have a general question for PETA and would like a response, please e-mail Info@peta.org. If you need to report cruelty to an animal, please click here. If you are reporting an animal in imminent danger and know where to find the animal and if the abuse is taking place right now, please call your local police department. If the police are unresponsive, please call PETA immediately at 757-622-7382 and press 2.
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