But these distinctions are lost in the global politics of whaling. Proponents suggest that the cultural needs and traditions of the Makah outweigh political and moral objections. But traditions and political rights have always had an uneasy relationship, and for good reasons. Europeans had a long tradition of slavery until society declared it unacceptable. The Chinese bound and crippled women's feet.
Some African societies practice female genital mutilation.
These are practices that our society condemns, regardless of their being traditional. Many people believe that whales are such intelligent, social beings that their killing cannot be justified by tradition. The time for whaling, like these other traditions, has passed. Defenders of Makah whaling will reject the comparisons, but they should not dismiss the fact that killing whales is profoundly offensive to many people. Those who take a stand against native whaling are easy targets for charges of racism and neocolonialism.