Green group Sea Shepherd has asked them to join the volunteers in Taiji, Japan

Jan 3, 2014 07:43 GMT  ·  By
Sea Shepherd hopes that artists who have canceled SeaWorld show will agree to become Cove Guardians
   Sea Shepherd hopes that artists who have canceled SeaWorld show will agree to become Cove Guardians

Conservation group Sea Shepherd hopes that the artists who have canceled their performance at SeaWorld Orlando’s upcoming Bands, Brew & BBQ festival will agree to reinforce their commitment to defending animal rights and protecting the world’s remaining whale and dolphin population by becoming Cove Guardians.

In a blogpost posted on the organization’s website this past December 31, Sea Shepherd details that it has asked Willie Nelson, Heart, Cheap Trick, Barenaked Ladies, REO Speedwagon, Trisha Yearwood, Martina McBride and .38 Special to join the volunteers in Taiji, Japan, and help them document the hunt presently underway in this part of the world.

The organization is confident that, by drawing attention to this yearly hunt, it will eventually succeed in convincing more people to get involved and demand that such practices are put an end to without delay.

As Cove Guardians, the artists would get the chance to witness first-hand how Japanese fishermen herd whales and dolphins into shallow waters and then slaughter some of them while choosing which should be kept alive and shipped to marine parks and other similar facilities. What’s more, they would help livestream these horrors.

“Thousands of dolphins, porpoises and small whales are captured or killed each year in coastal towns of Japan, none more infamous than Taiji — ground zero for the worldwide captive dolphin trade,” says Sea Shepherd USA Administrative Director, Susan Hartland.

“Captivity undeniably funds the killing, and we want to invite these compassionate artists to see this link for themselves as they visit the Cove with our dedicated Cove Guardians,” the conservationist goes on to argue.

Sea Shepherd’s inviting Willie Nelson, Heart, Cheap Trick, Barenaked Ladies, REO Speedwagon, Trisha Yearwood, Martina McBride, and .38 Special to become Cove Guardians is a response to the artists’ being asked by SeaWorld to visit one or two of its facilities, talk to trainers and see for themselves that the animals in the park’s care are well taken care of.