It’s that wretched time of year again.

The killing season opens Sunday, September 1 in Taiji, heralding a six-month orgy of mass terror, suffering, kidnapping, bloodshed and slaughter inflicted upon hapless pods of whales and dolphins unlucky enough to swim near the coast of Japan’s Kuman-nada Sea.

Herded by boats and terrifying banger poles into an inlet popularized by the Oscar-winning documentary The Cove, the stressed-out animals will be separated: younger, cuter ones will be sold to theme parks to spend a life in “show business.” The rest will be impaled, speared, sliced, and gutted in the crimson-red waters, destined for East-Asian dining tables.

In The Cove, a team of activists and filmmakers infiltrate a heavily-guarded cove in Taiji, Japan. In this remote village they witness and document activities deliberately being hidden from the public: More than 20,000 dolphins and porpoises are being slaughtered each year and their meat, containing toxic levels of mercury, is being sold as food in Japan, often times labeled as whale meat. 

The majority of the world is not aware this is happening. The Taiji cove is blocked off from the public. Cameras are not allowed inside and the media does not cover the story. It's critical that we get the word out in Japan. Once the Japanese people know we believe they will demand change. 

As of October 7th, "The Cove" will open a marine park where visitors can swim with dolphins, but Taiji officials said Monday its annual slaughter of the creatures will continue in a nearby bay. They want tourists to be able to eat dolphin and whale meat as they watch the captive animals frolic.

Swim with Dolphins, Then Eat Them? If Taiji's Horrifying Marine Park Happens, Tourists Could Do Both

 Taiji official Masaki Wada said the park would allow visitors to enjoy watching marine mammals while tasting various marine products, including whale and dolphin meat.”  This in the face of years of international outrage against the hunting, killing and eating of cetaceans. The park would be proof that Taiji is not “caving” to outside pressure.

Send a letter to President Obama, Vice President Biden and Japanese Ambassador to the United States Ichiro Fujisaki urging them to address this issue.  

Joe Biden: vice.president@whitehouse.gov 

Phone: (202) 456-1414

Barrack Obama: president@whitehouse.gov

Phone: (202) 456-1414