“America’s Next Top Model” judge Nigel Barker has turned his lens from beautiful women vying to be the next big thing in fashion to baby seals.
The “noted fashion photographer,” as he is dubbed by ANTM host Tyra Banks, opened a three day exhibition in New York City on Friday of photos taken during a trip off the coast of eastern Canada with the Humane Society of the United States.
“Quite frankly we should be preserving this landscape for future generations, not turning it into a bloody killing fields every year,” Barker told the crowd at a launch party for “A Sealed Fate?” on Thursday night. “Every year a quarter of a million seals are killed in the most brutal fashion.”
“This is a celebration of life,” he said of the exhibition. “This exhibition is hopefully going to also show the Canadians and the Canadian government what an eco-tourism opportunity they have.”
The European Commission adopted proposals on Wednesday to ban the import of pelts from seals that have endured excessive suffering while being killed.
None of the 15 seal species that are currently hunted is endangered, but European environmentalists and politicians have demanded action after finding what they say is evidence that seals are often skinned while still conscious.
Typically, the animals are first shot or bludgeoned over the head with a spiked club known as a hakapik.
But the Canadian government said the seal hunt off its east coast is humane and urged the EU not to “bow to misinformation and emotional rhetoric” from critics. It hopes to begin talks quickly to have Canadian seal products exempted from any ban.
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4 comments so far
This is the phoniest conservation cause in the world. It’s sad that anyone would allow their work to be used as propaganda for the jackbooted animal rights fascists.
- Posted by BarnyThe Canadian seal hunt is well managed, sustainable and is an important source of income for people in remote coastal regions. It’s sad that these people are being demonized by an American trying to flag up his sagging career in New York city, thousands of miles from where these people live, and where there is no voice to defend them.
It is so obvious to anyone with a brain that these poor animals are NOT being killed humanely. Why else would the Canadian government so strictly prohibit people from observing the slaughter? It is obvious to all that it is to prevent people from being able to observe and document what is actually happening. After all it would be hard for the government to claim humane killings when there is video evidence to the contrary.
The Canadian government wants the slaughter to continue as part of their welfare program for these ex-fisherman. There are few other jobs for these poorly educated people who have few, if any, other marketable skills. The Canadian government needs this make work project because they “managed” the cod fishery into extinction with their “sustainable harvest” of them.
This slaughter is really just a welfare program paid for by the taxpayers of Canada.
BAN THE PELTS
- Posted by Dr LeeAre you kidding me?????
This issue has been so emotionalized by some crazy extremist crackpots that hardly anyone seems to even know the truth anymore. Everyone seems to talk about “Baby seals” - the hunting of whitecoat and blueback seals “baby seals” has been outlawed in Canada since 1987!!!
Conservation means controling populations, the North Atlantic seal population is estimated at about 5.5 million, triple what it was in 1970. If they aren’t hunted what to you think that will mean to the other animal populations???? Not to mention the seal popultions,I think they would prefer not to die of starvation if the had a choice…..
Welfare??? This is hard work, if sealers were only doing this for the government dole they’d just stay at home - A LOT easier than sitting on a boat in the North Atlantic!
Also the Canadian government does allow people and groups to view the seal hunts (yet another misconception here) by acquiring a seal fishery observation license - that costs a big old $25. However, they do NOT allow the observers to interfere with the hunt.
Even the World Wildlife fund stated “Perception of the seal hunt seems to be based largely on emotion” C’mon people don’t believe all the garbage that’s fed to you, at least pretend to be educated.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2008_Canadi an_Commercial_Seal_Hunt
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