Whaling African Americans

The origin of modern day whales, a mystery that has puzzled paleontologists for years, may have just been solved with the discovery of an ankle bone. This discovery might sound simple and unimportant, but the bones of these ancient animals hold many unanswered questions and provide solid proof of origin and behavior. The relationship between whales and other animals has proven to be difficult because whales are warm-blooded, like humans, yet they live in the sea. The fact that they are warm-blooded suggests that they are related to some type of land animal. However, the questions of exactly which animal, and how whales evolved from land to water, have remained unanswered until now.

Long ago, native tribes, from many places in the world, depended largely on whales for protein in their diets. They were also able to use much of the whale for oil, thus began a tradition of whaling. The first documented whaling expedition occurred in South Korea

They used to spear whales and hope that they would wash up on shore (Sontella 22). They used this method until they made a new weapon for hunting whale. This new weapon is a spear attached to a rope (23-24). They now can spear the animal and drag it to shore using the rope. This weapon is similar to a harpoon.

They essentially believe that whale hunting was meant for them to honor the holy relationship of god and the beauty of this large beast. Whaling has always been the pivotal component that created the unique culture of the Makah. It was conducting on ritual and spiritual ceremony. For example, the elders usually found youngsters to be repulsive and disobedience. They basically discipline the children with the aggressive sense of whale hunting, so they can grow as a responsible adult who can surpass every obstacle. Whaling also tremendously boost the Indians’ pride. Archeologist Ruth Kirk found an artifact that was from the Makah whale tradition in 1970. He indicated that the Indians have sustained the culture for over 2,000 years. He found a part of “Chinook” canoe in his expedition which strengthen his report about the past life activities of Makah Indians. Chinook was specifically designed for the Makah to hunt whales at 40 miles off shores. Therefore, quality of the boat will determine fish caught successful rate. One boat should be solidly constructed that can carry approximately 8 people and strong enough to continue a 2-month sea voyage. Chinook “shovel-nose” model was the one with outstanding quality that could handle many possible sea waves. On the voyage, the Indians are well-prepared in weapon which was mussel-shape blade that sharp enough to penetrate the beast’s skin.

Whale hunting has been a way of life for the Makah Tribe for more than 2000 years. They have traditionally depended on the whale meat to survive as well as they have utilized the whales blubber and oil. The dependence on whale hunting has caused the whale to be an integral part of the Makah culture. The whale is in their songs, dances, designs and basketry. It has given them a disciple and pride in their tribe. Yet for the past seventy years the Makah has been prevented from hunting due to the gray whale, the whale they hunt, being on the endangered list. In 1994 the gray whale was removed form the endangered list opening the possibility of the Makah Tribe to hunt again. Yet this possibility has caused anti-whaling organizations

Not only did it provide building materials for the colonists there were also many products that colonists were able to get from the trees. Timber was essential in the building of the colonies. The abundant forest areas provided the timber that colonists needed to acquire the things they needed such as shelter and household furnishings. A sawmill was one of the first commercial business to be established in the colonies. The timber and lumber industries also provided a way for the colonists to make a living. Pine, oak, maple, beech, birch, hickory, ash and cypress were plentiful during this time in early America. The wood from these types of trees were not only used for colonists, but also for building ships, barrel making and exporting wood to England. England had depleted much of their timber supply and benefited from the timber found in the New World. There were many other products were made from sap found in trees such as resin, tar, pitch, turpentine and

They also fished as their source of food. They hadas human resources skilled craftsmen, shopkeepers, and shipbuilders. These people of the New England colony specialized in whaling, fishing, shipbuilding, industry, and naval supplies. WE traded with the southern colony for cotton, and other materials in order to manufacture our goods. They also depended on the Mid Atlantic colonies for their livestock and grain.They trade to the Mid Atlantic colonies the goods they don't produce themselves. The Boston harbor became a great big center of commerce.

In the years 1607 and 1630, the world saw the beginning of two very important English colonies; Jamestown, Virginia and the Massachusetts Bay Colony. England had many reasons behind their colonization. A major reason was the idea of Mercantilism, a concept in which colonies are said to exist solely for the benefit of their mother country. The Virginia Company went to Jamestown in 1606 in hope of using the land to cultivate crops and to make a living. In 1630, the Non-Separatist Puritans went to the New England Area in hopes of setting up a religious commonwealth for the people.

Colonists participated in international and imperial trade by using the triangular trade. Although, out of necessity, the colonies sent raw materials, such as fish and fur, to England in exchange for manufactured goods. In order to protect England’s agriculture and fisheries put taxes on goods. This resulted in the New York and New England to buy more from England than they sold. To avoid this, the colonies started using their own ships and merchants, this formed the triangular trade. The triangular trade allowed New Englanders to ship rum to the west coast of Africa, where they exchanged for slaves; took the enslaved Africans to the West Indies; and returned home with various commodities, including molasses from which they manufactured rum. The triangular trade allowed the colonies trade to prosper and for more profit to be

Why didn’t they just stay on the land like just about every other mammal in the world. Whale’s ancestor the Indohyus resembled that of a wolf or even deer. Over time, it started swimming in the water more, hunting for food in the water more, and traveled in the water more. Through the process of natural selection, the phenotype of the Indohyus slowly changed over time to accommodate for these changes. It accommodated the changes by slowly forming aquatic features that allowed it to move faster and more efficiently in the water, as well as hunt better in the water. The whale is one of the few carnivorous sea creatures, and it is believed to be so because of it’s early ancestors hunting on land live other mammals such as wolves. This would explain the strange diet of whales compared to other sea creatures like fish and algae. Being one of the largest animals in the entire ocean, whales could easily devour any meal they wanted, though more recently, the diet of the whale has minimized to smaller animals like krill but in large quantities. Along with its outward appearance, its behavior has changed dramatically. Unlike its ancestors who hunt on land or close to land, whales hunt deep into the sea a very low depths, since they are capable of doing so with their fully developed lungs, another trait that suggests evidence towards it having land mammal

The New England Colonies had a strong economy due to it's location and ability to trade by ships. Ship building was also a very huge part of the economy. Lumber from nearby forests was used to create large ships that would only be sold in England or Britain. There were also many craftspeople who contributed greatly to the economy by owning small businesses. Some of the crafts included blacksmiths, shoemakers.

The Makah tribal reservation, held in Washington’s most upper northwest corner, retained tribal power throughout the past into the present. Throughout the centuries, whales have remained a key aspect of the Makah tribal nation identity through cultural values and practices, compared to the other Coast Salish nation tribes who valued fishing salmon and growing camas. The Makah in past centuries actively hunted whales, and crafted goods (such as boxes, blankets, and other items) with whales on them. Due to this, In the late 1900s, the Makah tribal nation sought to restore whaling rights lost during commercial whaling in the nineteenth century.

The debate surrounding Makah whaling is a heated one to say the least. There are valid points on both sides of the argument, but there is one side I find to be more valid once the facts have been looked at. I will examine and present my findings regarding past and current laws and regulations related to whaling, types of whaling, other countries that take an active part in whaling (and why), as well as the Makah culture – both past and present. In this paper I will argue why the Makah should not be allowed to resume whaling, as it is unnecessary and could potentially put the grey whale species back on the endangered list.

Whales were peeled by vessels, conserved by the cold, and packed in barrels. 1719 Greenland whaling operation spread into Davis Strait. Davis Strait whaling operation was in the power of the Dutch and German until 1780. The Britain had to leave and service their industrial revolution. From the beginning of the 1690s the British had hunted down whales (have been fishing) in the Bay of North America colonies,also in Rhode Island, Long Island, Cape Cod. These were new centers of activity for (whaling) fishing. Then, during 1712 the Nantucket vessel capture the first sperm whale,these became a brand new center.

Whaling is defined as hunting and killing of whales by humans for resources, mainly meat, blubber and baleen (whalebone) obtained from whales. These resources are then sold for commercial purposes and thus, whaling has become economical important for centuries (Joanne 2007; The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia 2007). Scientific whaling is conducted by hunting whales for research purposes and further analysis to study on whale’s behaviour, characteristics and distribution (Joanne 2007). Commercial whaling is a controversial whaling practice that exploits whale products for trade and profit. Recently, Japan, Norway and Iceland are the major contributors of commercial whaling and deeply support any other whaling activities (Joanne 2007). Moratorium on commercial whaling 1986 is a global ban of hunting whales for commercial purposes, implemented by International Whaling Commission (IWC). Under Article VIII, unlimited scientific research is permitted but sufficient data and analysis are required by Science Committee set up by IWC (Papastavrou 2006).