I was incensed today to read about a piano manufacturer BECHSTEIN who has made a piano using NEW ivory.
This issue was brought to my attention through @domdyer70 on Twitter following an article in the Guardian here.
You can't fail to have missed the recent news about poaching and slaughter of elephants and rhinos - to the extent where extinction is a real possibility. NOT a word we want to be hearing, ever.
Yet here is a company using, it would appear, what is called 'legal' ivory (something I had never heard of before) to justify its use of the ivory - in a product that has gone to - you guessed it - China.
Regardless of the 'unique' circumstances - there can never be any need for using ivory ever again. Never.
It's use will simply perpetuate the sad, deluded demand and the vicious slaughter.
I have written to the piano-making company BECHSTEIN to express my disgust. Here is my letter - you are free to copy it for a quick email to them or - it's always more powerful to write your own feelings down.
I intend to write something in more detail to them as time allows - but for now wanted to make you aware of this unacceptable situation.
Please let me know of any response/s you get.
TY
Chantal x
LETTER:
Through their auto contact page here:
I am so disgusted and saddened today to read in The Guardian of your
use of new, real ivory for a piano. You say in your statement that it was 'legal'
ivory - but this is still helping to perpetuate a desire for a product that is
- quite simply - going to cause the extinction of one of our planet's most
amazing animals.
How will you feel when you have to tell your children about
the great animal that was an elephant - rather than be able to show them one in
the wild / a reserve? And to know that your company had a hand in helping it to
be poached to death - all because someone was inspired by you to either buy a
piano with new ivory or an ivory ‘trinket’ because they thought it was still the
fashionable thing to do.
Simply saying you used a 'legal' product does not make it
right. You are directly contributing to the death of a species.
You clearly are a leader in the field of piano-making so
search your conscience and be leaders in compassion and ethics as well.
I've never heard of legal ivory either. Disgraceful. I have written to them too. This makes me so mad!
ReplyDeleteEw, ew, ew. Always sad when you think all manufacturers have gone animal-free with a product, and some clever dick thinks his firm is going to be different.
ReplyDelete