||| FROM KNKX NPR |||


The long wait is over. A federal official has given the green light for members of the Makah tribe to resume exercising their treaty right to whaling, based on a request first made in 2005. Their last hunt took place in 1999.

With a waiver under the Marine Mammal Protection Act in hand, the tribe will be authorized to hunt and kill up to three eastern North Pacific gray whales per year over the next decade.

Their hunt could start as soon as this summer or fall, although the tribe said a hunt this fall or later is more likely. Makah officials must first secure a permit from the National Marine Fisheries Service.

The Tribe and officials from NOAA Fisheries must enter into a cooperative agreement honoring internationally established quotas under the Whaling Convention Act. And dozens of young men in the whaling crew need to be physically and spiritually ready.

Joy and relief

Janine Ledford, executive director of the Makah Cultural and Research Center in Neah Bay, recalled the feeling she had as a young woman witnessing the whale hunt in 1999. The 25 years that have passed since then have amplified that feeling.

“It’s actually pretty hard to put to words, but it’s monumental, it’s really incredible,” Ledford said in anticipation of the decision.

“When you’re resuming something that is so central and so important – that our ancestors never let us forget about.”

She said there is also sadness and frustration about the many people who died waiting to see the revival of the whale hunt. But there are equal numbers of young people who have been waiting and have set their sights on supporting it in some way.

“Everybody here is involved in one way or another. We’ve never lost sight of the importance of whales and whale hunting,” Ledford said. “You know, we weren’t hunting for roughly 80 years, but that didn’t mean that our community – that our tribe, you know – forgot how important whales are to us.”

Since 1999, the tribe has continued to nurture the whaling culture and customs as best they can, without actually going on a hunt. Stranded and entangled whales are sometimes brought to Makah beaches for traditional processing, as recently as in 2018 and 2020.

The hunt is to be conducted using traditional methods, such as hand-carved canoes and harpoons. As in 1999, Makah hunters will also use modern equipment, including motorized chase-boats and a high-powered rifle to quickly kill the whale after it is struck.

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