She may not be indestructible like Claire, but Heroes cheerleader Hayden Panettiere is trying to save the world in her own way.
The 18-year-old actress was involved in a violent confrontation with Japanese fishermen as she tried to disrupt a dolphin slaughter.
Hayden was one of six surfers from Australia and the United States who were intercepted by a fishing boat before they could reach dolphins they hoped to save from being drive into a nearby cove and killed.
The angry fishermen used the boat’s propellers to block the protesters’ way, and at one point struck out at Hayden Panettiere and her cohorts with a boathook.
It was an ugly, potentially life-threatening confrontation that lasted more than 10 minutes before the surfers were forced to return to the beach.
Hayden Panettiere, a keen surfer, committed marine conservationist and supporter of the campaign to save Japan’s dolphins, said:
“It was really frightening. Some of us were hit by the boathook. But in the end all we really worried about was the dolphins. It was so incredibly sad. We were so close to them and they were sky hopping, jumping out of the water to see us.”
Breaking down, she added: “One little baby dolphin stuck his head outand kinda looked at me and the thought that it’s no longer with us is really hard to take.”
“I couldn’t believe how red the water was,” the Heroes star said in a statement issued through the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. “The whales were so scared. Hopefully their deaths won’t be in vain.”
Following the incident, the surfers drove straight to Osaka airport and left the country to avoid arrest by the Japanese national police.
More than 22,000 dolphins are slaughtered by fishermen in Japan every year. The hunt continues despite worldwide condemnation.
29 comments to “Hayden Panettiere Involved in Violent Protest in Effort to Save Dolphins”
Kym, November 2nd, 2007 at 7:25 am :
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I am so thrilled for the future of animals when young people like you are commited to doing the right thing and doing! When I was younger and living in Florida, I floated in the channels with the manatee so that boaters would slow down and obey the no wake zone. I hope that through your fan base that others will follow your lead to protect all species that we SHARE this planet with and respect will be found for all of us. Keep rockin’ the respect!
Mark, November 2nd, 2007 at 12:56 pm :
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As a fifty-one year old male who isn’t really tuned into what a younger generation than mine is watching on TV, listening to, etc. i have to admit i had never heard of Hayden Panettiere before i saw some video footage of her group’s recent attempts to interfere in a dolphin hunt in Japan on an Internet news site.
I then also went to one of ber fansites and read about her trying to protect a little girl from being trampled by some papparazzi. My question is: “Where did this girl and her small group of fellow heroes come from and can we clone about ten million copies of them?” If we could do that, maybe we’d have half a chance of saving this world from all the sub-humans out there bent on destroying it.
I would venture to guess that there aren’t too many other celebrities out there willing to put their butts where their mouths are and take the chance of being impaled by a boat hook or sliced up by the propeller of an outboard motor to protect creatures, whether human or otherwise, whose innocence and trust in “adult” human beings can unfortunately place them in danger of being injured or killed.
To me, the fact that some of the Japanese who condone the slaughter of these mammals can say that it is an issue emotions should play no part in is an indication that there are people out there who actually were born without souls. It’s very scary. Also, the fact that dolphins, according to what i read, aren’t protected by international laws banning the killing of whales makes no sense whatsoever. Dolphins are members of the whale family!
Well, maybe some of these same “ignorati” who are unaware of this fact are also under the impression that dolphins are fish and not mammals, just as they are. I wouldn’t be surprised. The difference being, of course, that dolphins are much more intelligent, sensitive and nurturing mammals than a substantial percentage of their “more evolved” land dwelling counterparts.
Anyway, i am overwhelmed by the compassion and bravery of Ms. Panettiere and her helpers in risking their lives to protect these incredible creatures and bringing this cruel practice of commercially-driven dolphin slaughter into the living rooms of people in this country and around the world who may not be aware of it.
I think the horribly graphic and incredibly sad huge blood “slick” floating on the water shown in the video in the area where the dolphins were slaughtered, in spite of the heroic efforts of Ms. Panettiere and her fellow heroes is ample evidence that this horrible practice needs to be addressed by the international community immediately. Perhaps some dolphins were saved that day by the efforts of Hayden and her friends. Certainly, they all paid the price for their bravery by having their hearts broken by what they saw. When i watched these women being interviewed after their intervention and saw the pain and tears rolling down their faces, i wept also. They risked more than just their physical beings that day to make the world aware of what is going on. An experience such as that is one that never leaves you, if you are a sensitive person. They’ll have to live with those images for the rest of their lives.
Incidentally, if Hayden Panettiere and friends ever decide to have children in her future, as i suspect they might want to do, i think their future offspring can consider themselves very lucky to have such loving parents. I also think Ms. Panettiere’s generation is lucky to have role models such as she and her fellow “warriors”.
I use the term “warrior”, for that is truly what they are. They went into a war zone that day, to show the world the kind of cruelty that men are capable of, in the name of greed and economic profit.
When will human beings learn that, to paraphrase an idea found in many works of literature and philosophy, including the Bible, it does not profit anyone to gather up earthly riches, when the ultimate price paid for such folly is to lose one’s soul in the process? Indeed, to lose one’s soul and the planet as well? Caring people everywhere owe you and your band of heroes a debt of gratitude, Hayden. You went into a hell that day to protect those dolphins as if they were your own children. Personally, i don’t think there’s any higher indication of a person’s humanity than to undertake such a selfless mission.
Gemini, November 3rd, 2007 at 3:48 pm :
jake van rijs, November 3rd, 2007 at 4:41 pm :
Used to Like Hayden, November 3rd, 2007 at 7:10 pm :
paula, November 5th, 2007 at 12:28 am :
Laura Beissel, November 5th, 2007 at 11:08 pm :
Kimberly N., November 6th, 2007 at 1:53 pm :
Mary Jo, November 6th, 2007 at 2:32 pm :
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I am proud to see any group of humans who stand up for our non-human counterparts. Hayden I am most especially proud you brought the cruel,inhumane ‘tradition’ to the world’s attention. It’s time to forego any tradition that involves cruelty to our animal kingdom. Many humans are to self absorbed to open their hearts and close their ego minds to see the truth, power, and intelligence the animal kingdom holds. This world is becoming a better place with the younger generation who CARES DEEPLY and who has PASSION to live in this world as a WHOLE. Thank you Hayden for your passion to live in this world with such compassion!
Lisanne, November 7th, 2007 at 12:12 am :
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I agree wholeheartedly with Mark’s comments given on Nov.2. I was thinking the same thing too, about her having to live with those horrible images the rest of her life. I am 38, and can’t stand it- and I just watched it on t.v.
Boy, we humans sure have a huge & inflated superiority complex don’t we?? We are no better than the animals we slaughter by the billions. Actually we act like animals and the animals act like humans should act. They are kind, caring & show respect/sympathy & empathy to other animals and to humans as well. And to the abortion clinic comment- when a woman kills her unborn baby, that is her choice, she is not out killing an innocent human or animal. Why do people always have to compare or bring up things that happen bad to humans when there is an animal rights issue going on?? There is a cause for everyone in this world, and I’ll chose the animal rights cause just like Hayden.
And to Showbiz Tonight, shame on you for grouping Hayden with 3 other women under the title “The Crying Game” on this evening’s show. If you can’t cry over the brutal, barbaric, sickening murder of dolphins/whales, we might as well all hang it up.
Trevor, November 8th, 2007 at 1:02 am :
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Bah some celebrity tried to save some dolphins. Big woop. Its not really a big deal. There have probably been tons of celebrities to pull that stunt. Tell me when some celebrity starts to try and save our sharks. But no… all anyone cares about are dolphins and no sharks are not man-eaters and yes I am a shark freak so if by any chance this celebrity does read this, go save our sharks. I am only on this site because I heard about the dolphins and wanted to say how predictable it is.SAVEOURSHARKS FOOL
Trevor, November 8th, 2007 at 1:19 am :
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Its kinda funny how you guys go on and on about how human’s ego blocks them from doing the right thing and all that stuff when I’m sure that most of you if not all of you fear and hate sharks and would cheer for anyone to kill sharks. If I’m describing you maybe you should actually learn about sharks. For example, for every human killed by a shark (which is only about 15 ayear world wide) there are over 10,000 sharks killed. Think about it. P.S. nothing personal, just telling it how it is.
Trevor, November 8th, 2007 at 1:26 am :
Debbie Floyd, November 8th, 2007 at 10:01 am :
Grace, November 15th, 2007 at 8:19 pm :
brianna, November 17th, 2007 at 12:32 am :
dee, November 20th, 2007 at 3:16 am :
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wow, trevor right sharks are not man eaters they just end up killing thousands of people in a year. so if dolphins never hurted people why is it wrong for THEM to try to save the dolphins? It’s not a stunt, for people like hayden to come out to japan and try to save the dolphins its kind of a way for them to reach out to us and tell us if they can take time out we can do something too. If’s funny how when a star doesn’t do anything but party like crazy they get crap and when young stars like hayden does try to do something people like you are unhappy because you rather have her save sharks? and they also get crap? Tell me would you take your surf board and swim in middle of the ocean with hundreds of sharks around you and feel safe about saving them. Sharks, whales, dolphins it really doesn’t matter. They don’t need to be hurt, so whey are they hurting them. Oh btw, Japanese ppl are also known for killing sharks for its fin and selling it to china.
rose, November 20th, 2007 at 9:53 pm :
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i dont get y u ppl r arguing over whether dolphins should be saved more than skarks or vis versa, y cant u guys just simply agree and y cant both species simply be saved by the way, hayden i love what u did, keep it up, and i totally love heros
Trevor, November 21st, 2007 at 1:01 am :
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Hey Dee, how bout getting your facts right. Sharks kill about 15 people world wide each year so if you want to hate an animal that kills people, how bout horses or donkeys cause believe it or not, they kill a lot more people each year than sharks. Also, lemme make myself clear , some sharks are extremely dangerous so I wouldn’t go in the water with them with a surf board. I would dive with them and even put on some chainmail and let some smaller species bite me, which is actually a job.
Trevor, November 21st, 2007 at 1:15 am :
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I actually would prefer her to save the sharks for there is no actual save the shark camgaigns and there are tons of save the dolphins and whales campaigns even though sharks are more vital to the survival of this world. I do see why people support dolphins and whales so much. They’re easier to study, they have a better rep, they’re lovable, and its a lot harder to love a species that might attack you, but that doesnt mean we should ignore them and confuse them with the fake sharks the media portrays.
Trevor, November 21st, 2007 at 1:27 am :
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And of corse i know japan kills sharks for their fins but it doesnt stop there! People kill sharks all over the world for fins, sport or because they think they’re man-eaters. Also the number of sharks that die per year are in the millions. If you still dont get it, read SHARK LIFE by Peter Benchley and see SHARKWATER. By the way, get your facts right the next time you try to prove someone wrong cause you just got owned! P.S. dont test me on this, Im very pationate about sharks.
Trevor, November 21st, 2007 at 1:38 am :
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Oh, and Rob Stewart is a real hero (he made the documentary SHARKWATER) watch at ieast the trailer for and you’ll see what I mean. Plus, people do what Hayden did every day and you dont hear about it. Hell Rob Stewart did a hell of alot more life threating things in his documentary and he’s getting less media than one half decent thing a rich spoiled young actress did. Now I cant be the only one who thinks this is sad. SAVE OUR SHARKS!!
Trevor, November 21st, 2007 at 1:41 am :
Adam, November 21st, 2007 at 7:33 am :
Don, December 6th, 2007 at 12:55 am :
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Dee, there are species of dolphins that have been known to attack and sometimes kill humans intentionally and they are considered more dangerous than sharks. In fact most shark attacks are unintentional. But, uh, it seems trevors really into the sharks thing so all we can do is admire how he loves something that is capable of suddenly killing him . Dolphins give a warning bfefore an attack.
Brynn Andrea L., December 9th, 2007 at 7:07 pm :
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She is an AMAZING young woman! Not only an amazing actress, but a wonderful human being! I love her passion for creatures such as the dolphins. I was watching something about her on TV, where she was protesting the japanese slaughter of dolphins, and she left the water crying her heart out! She brought me to tears! The passion she has, what a wonderful role model! I wish more of our celebrities would follow in her footsteps! I hope she focuses her attention next on the horrible slaughter houses where millions of animals are murdered cruely for meat! I am not saying go meat-free, I am saying go cruelty-free! Also, killing for animal fur! I hope to see Hayden speaking out on that cause!
Great job Hayden!
Love
Brynn
Huy, January 4th, 2008 at 8:28 pm :
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Hayden, I keep falling in love with you eventhough we’ve never met. I know its weird/freaky but I cant help it. Seeing you cry in the dolphin video just breaks my heart, i feel your pain and i too feel for the dolphins. I hope to meet u at least in my lifetime.
jacy, January 29th, 2008 at 12:07 pm :
shae, March 4th, 2008 at 1:31 pm :
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