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| Makah whaling case | |
|---|---|
| Name | Makah whaling case |
| Location | Neah Bay, Washington |
| Date | 1999–2007 |
| Participants | Makah Indian Tribe; National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; United States Department of Justice; International Whaling Commission; Greenpeace; Sea Shepherd Conservation Society |
Makah whaling case
The Makah whaling case concerns the 1999 revival of a subsistence gray whale hunt by the Makah Indian Tribe of Neah Bay, Washington and the ensuing legal, political, and cultural disputes involving the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the United States Department of Justice, the International Whaling Commission, Greenpeace, and the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. The episode engaged issues arising from the Treaty of Neah Bay (1855), interpretations of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, deliberations before the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, and appeals involving the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
The Makah people trace whaling heritage to pre-contact eras documented by ethnographers such as Franz Boas and collections at the Smithsonian Institution, and their subsistence practices were explicitly recognized in the Treaty of Neah Bay (1855), negotiated between Makah leaders and representatives of the United States including Isaac Stevens. The decline of gray whale populations in the 19th and early 20th centuries involved commercial whalers like the American whaling fleet and regulatory responses by bodies including the International Whaling Commission and statutes such as the Endangered Species Act of 1973 and the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972. Archaeologists and anthropologists connected to institutions like the University of Washington and the British Museum have contributed scholarship on Makah maritime culture, material culture held at the Field Museum, and legal-history analyses published through the American Anthropological Association.
Legal disputes invoked the Treaty of Neah Bay (1855)],] precedent from the Boldt Decision of the United States v. Washington litigation, and statutory interpretation under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 and the Endangered Species Act of 1973. Federal agencies including the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Marine Fisheries Service weighed permits under processes informed by the Administrative Procedure Act. Litigation engaged the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington and appeals to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, with potential ultimate review by the Supreme Court of the United States. Tribal sovereignty issues involved principles articulated in cases such as Worcester v. Georgia and statutes like the Indian Reorganization Act and opinions referencing the Office of the Solicitor, U.S. Department of the Interior.
In 1999, the Makah conducted a harpoon hunt that took a gray whale under authority claimed based on the Treaty of Neah Bay (1855), prompting interventions and protests by groups including Greenpeace, Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, and litigants represented by attorneys linked to the American Civil Liberties Union. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Marine Fisheries Service investigated permit requirements while the United States Department of Justice evaluated potential federal prosecutions under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 and the Endangered Species Act of 1973. Civil and criminal enforcement discussions referenced precedent from cases in the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and filings in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, while commentary and amicus briefs were filed by institutions including the International Whaling Commission and environmental law centers associated with the Sierra Club and the Natural Resources Defense Council.
Makah claims rested on treaty rights affirmed by historical documents housed at the National Archives and Records Administration and legal interpretation invoking doctrines advanced in Worcester v. Georgia and decisions concerning tribal fishing rights exemplified by the Boldt Decision and United States v. Washington. The Makah assertion of cultural and subsistence exceptions under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 led to consultations involving the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and trust responsibilities discussed in memoranda from the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Academic legal analysis by scholars at the University of California, Berkeley School of Law and the Harvard Law School examined the tension between treaty-based subsistence rights and federal conservation statutes adjudicated by the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
Environmental organizations including the World Wildlife Fund, International Whaling Commission, Greenpeace, and scientific bodies such as the National Research Council and the Scripps Institution of Oceanography debated population assessments of the eastern North Pacific gray whale conducted by researchers affiliated with the National Marine Fisheries Service and universities like the University of Washington. Conservation science discussions referenced stock assessments, telemetry studies by the Smithsonian Institution, and international policy frameworks under the Convention on Biological Diversity and the North Pacific Marine Science Organization. Ecologists and marine mammal biologists publishing through journals connected to the American Fisheries Society and the Society for Marine Mammalogy contributed data used in regulatory determinations.
The event drew extensive coverage from media outlets including The New York Times, The Seattle Times, National Public Radio, and BBC News, and provoked activist campaigns by Greenpeace and Sea Shepherd Conservation Society alongside support from tribal advocates associated with the Makah Indian Tribe and allied organizations such as the National Congress of American Indians. Opinion pieces appeared in publications affiliated with the Los Angeles Times and academic commentary from centers like the Bren School of Environmental Science & Management at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Public demonstrations and testimony at hearings involved participants from institutions like the Smithsonian Institution and leaders including tribal chairpersons and legal counsel appearing before federal agencies.
Subsequent years saw the Makah pursue a regulated hunt framework involving permits from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and consultations under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 and the Endangered Species Act of 1973, with follow-up management plans informed by studies from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and academic partners such as the University of Washington and the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Litigation and policy discussions continued in forums including the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and federal administrative proceedings, while the Makah maintained cultural restoration efforts supported by institutions like the National Endowment for the Humanities and partnerships with conservation organizations including the World Wildlife Fund.