Greenpeace

Today I stood in front of the White House with nearly 100 activists — and 4 humpback whales — to tell President Obama to keep his promise to save the whales.

Just days before US delegates attend the International Whaling Commission meeting in Morocco, we stopped by the White House to convince President Obama, one of the most environmentally-minded presidents ever elected, to make the US a worldwide leader in whale conservation.


Over 1.5 million people wrote a letter, signed a petition, colored a whale card, folded an origami whale, took a photo, or made a phone call to tell President Obama to keep his promise to save the whales. It was one of the largest outpourings of support for an environmental issue in US history.

We brought a rainbow of hundreds of origami whales, whale-shaped banners filled with a collage of your whale cards, whale tails, and a big banner that read, “1 million voices for whales. Obama: join us.” Check out some of our favorite pics.

Phil Kline, our Oceans Campaigner, handed the President’s Council on Environmental Quality staff a photo album with your heartfelt pics of family and friends, showing how much you love the whales.

As we’ve made these banners and gathered your photos, origami whales, and cards over the past few days, I’ve been overcome with the feeling that millions of people deeply believe in what we’re doing. So many of you spoke from the heart about your love for the whales and created beautiful artwork to express it. I carried that with me today, along with the deep hope that all our work will mean that these majestic creatures will be around for the next generation, and the generation beyond.

Because of you, the President can no longer ignore us — it’s time for him to step up and be the president we thought we elected. It’s time for him to represent the voices of millions of Americans and do what’s right for the whales — not the whalers.