The public awareness campaign to release Lolita (aka Tokitae) from the Miami Seaquarium gathered momentum recently. The Lummi Nation tribe of Washington state, (whose traditional territory in the Salish Sea also served as Lolita’s native waters) held a press conference in Miami, Florida to advocate for the release of the female killer whale, following 48 years of confinement.
A wide range of local and national media were present for the event, along with former Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine and colleagues from Orca Network who for many years have spearheaded the campaign to retire Lolita from her mundane daily shows and instead, have her live out her remaining days in an ocean seapen along the shores of Orcas Island – just across Rosario Strait from the Lummi Reservation west of Bellingham and the same body of water still frequented by Lolita’s family pod.
“Tokitae’s story needs to be heard and needs to be shared. It’s the right thing to do” (Jay Julius, Chairman of the Lummi Nation)
On August 8, 1970, dozens of members of the Southern Resident Killer Whale community ( J-pod, K-pod, and L-pod) were herded into Penn Cove on Whidbey Island. Five whales drowned, seven young whales were stolen from their families. Only one survives today. Her name is Lolita. Still a baby when captured and sold to the Seaquarium, Lolita languishes in the size of a bathtub in comparison to what she would experience in the wild with her family, L-pod. A life far removed from a life of freedom where these majestic whales can swim up to 100 miles in a day, yet Lolita lives in the smallest orca tank in North America. She deserves better than this.
The Lummi Nation has planned a 27-day, 13-stop tour with a totem pole designed to honour Lolita, which will end with a two-day event in Miami on May 23 and 24. The tribe has named the “Bring Tokitae Home” project as its highest priority; they have scheduled events advocating for Lolita’s release every three months through March 2019.They also plan for a full-length documentary about Lolita which will be produced by Los Angeles based filmmakers, Geoff Schaaf and Dennie Gordon.
Watch the 9-minute trailer for the documentary here
