Makah Tribe

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An indigenous tribe in north America wants to revive long discarded tradition of whale hunting which they have abandoned for almost a century. Despite their elders’ and environmental community’s approval, the younger generation is keen to revive the forgotten family tradition with the expectation of creating unity amongst themselves and the generations to follow. Parties involved in this case are the members of the Makah tribe and the environmentalists. The moral issue, in this case, is whether the act of hunting a whale is justifiable and is it acceptable for us as a member of non-tribe to judge and oppose the restoration effort of tribe’s lost tradition. It must be noted that whale hunting has tremendously contributed to the endangerment …show more content…
Why now bother to hunt an already endangered species while you have already thrived for so long without realizing the need of it? If killing whales is just for pride and discipline, the Makah should indeed adapt to global change and continue living life they are already accustomed to. Viewing it from the ethics of consequentialism, revival of whale hunting will bring utility by improving their economic status and elevating the social prestige. This also correspond with the notion of “hedonistic persuasion, maintaining that pleasure/happiness is the only thing that has any fundamental value or utility” (Burnor, Raley p95). It should be noted that their social structure and economy were deeply associated with the tradition of whale hunt which created utility and pleasure in them. They hunted whales for fulfilling basic survival needs as well. But with the passage of time, endangerment of the species, and strict enforcement of environmental laws, the tribesmen were forced to abandon their age old tradition and adopt a new way of

Similarities Between Makah And The Umatilla

The Makah tribe of the coastal and the Umatilla of the plateau interacted with their environment similarly and differently. Of food, shelter, and clothing for their people. Based on their two different locations do you think the Makah and the Umatilla have similar or different interactions are different or similar?. For example, on page “1200” in the Encyclopedia of Native Americans it states, “Men fished for salmon, halibut, various fish, shrimp, small octopus, etc. On the other hand,…

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Makah And Umatilla Similarities

The differences and similarities of the Makah and Umatilla and their clothing and the recourses were dependent on where they live. Have you ever wondered what it was like to have to look for your own food, water and shelter? Have you ever thought of why life was so hard back then. Back then the tribes had to do many different things to survive? The Makah and Umatilla tribes of the Northwest interacted with their environment differently and similarly to provide food, shelter and clothing for…

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The Importance Of Hunting Neah Whales

I believe the Makah tribes should be granted the waiver to continue to hunt gray whales. In 1855, the Makah Indians signed over thousands of acres of land to the Federal Government. Whaling is very important to the Makah, so much in fact that “In 1855 when the Makah ceded thousands of acres of land to the government of the United States, they explicitly reserved their right to whale within the Treaty of Neah Bay.” When that Treaty of Neah Bay was signed the Makah, people exchanged not only their…

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Summary: Why Indians Aren T Christian

the Pacific Northwest, there were two Indian Tribes. They both had different religions, but they still relied on each other for food, shelter and clothing. The Makah were in charge of food, while the Chinook built strong, cedar-wood longhouses for the Indians to live in. They respected their religions in which the Chinook believed in Yahweh, and the Makah believed in Satan. There were also two boys named Lore and Joaquin who were enemies in the tribes. They hunted apart, but fished together, even…

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Makah Indian Culture

with that, or would you disagree with this action? Killing whales was a part of the Makah Indian Tribe culture. The Makah Indian Tribe had treaty rights to hunt whales. This has been a treaty right for them since 1855, but in the 1920’s they gave up the killing of whales, which is also called “whaling” (pg.1). Some might say it is wrong to kill an innocent animal, but as for the Makah, they think otherwise. The Makah society is for the most part a poor community. This community is located in a tiny…

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Chief Seattle And Tecumseh Analysis

Like the American founding fathers, long-standing Native American tribes serve to represent a strong sense of cultural pride, or at least they should. Take the Makah people, for instance, who originated along the coastline of present day Washington and survived primarily based on their excellent maritime skills combined with environmental knowledgeability. As with most other tribes, Makah lifestyle took a decline following the introduction of white settlers onto Native American land. The cause of…

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