WHAT'S NEXT

Support A Shark Fin Ban in Toronto
  1. Signatures
    9,946 out of 10,000
    Petitioning
    1. City Councillor (+ 39 others)
      Petitioning
      close
      • City Councillor (Janet Davis)
      • City Councillor (Mark Grimes)
      • City Councillor (Chin Lee)
      • City Councillor (Paul Ainslie)
      • City Councillor (Maria Augimeri)
      • City Councillor (Frances Nuziata)
      • City Councillor (Josh Colle)
      • City Councillor (Mary Fragedakis)
      • City Councillor (Mike Layton)
      • City Councillor (John Filion)
      • City Councillor (Mary-Margaret McMahon)
      • City Councillor (Ron Moeser)
      • City Councillor (Vincent Crisanti)
      • City Councillor (Pam McConnell)
      • City Councillor (Ana Ballão)
      • City Councillor (Gary Crawford)
      • City Councillor (Peter Milczyn)
      • City Councillor (Cesar Palacio)
      • City Councillor (Josh Matlow)
      • City Councillor (Shelley Carroll)
      • City Councillor (Raymond Cho)
      • City Councillor (Joe Mihevc)
      • City Councillor (Giorgio Mammoliti)
      • City Councillor (David Shiner)
      • City Councillor (Frank Di Giorgio)
      • City Councillor (Michelle Berardinetti)
      • City Councillor (Sarah Doucette)
      • City Councillor (Anthony Perruzza)
      • City Councillor (Michael Thompson)
      • City Councillor (Jaye Robinson)
      • City Councillor (Doug Holyday)
      • City Councillor (Karen Stintz)
      • City Councillor (Mike Del Grande)
      • City Councillor (Denzil Minnan-Wong)
      • City Councillor (Norm Kelly)
      • City Councillor (Paula Fletcher)
      • City Councillor (Adam Vaughan)
      • City Councillor (Gloria Lindsay Luby)
      • City Councillor (Gord Perks)
      • City Councillor (Doug Ford)
  2. Created By
    Shark Truth
About this Petition Petition Letter Petition Updates
How We Won

Oct 25, 2011

After nearly 10,000 people signed Shark Truth's petition urging Toronto's City Councillors to vote in favor of a city-wide ban on the sale of shark fins, the Council passed the legislation with a vote of 38-4! The restaurant industry and fin importers worked hard to squash the shark fin ban, but thanks to the efforts of folks like Shark Truth and Change.org members, Councillors voted in favor of the legislation.

Up to 73 million sharks are killed every year through finning, so the passage of the Toronto shark fin ban is a momentous step towards ocean conservation. Toronto is now the fourth city in Ontario to ban the sale of shark fins.

 

Despite popular media portrayals of sharks, the truth is, more people die from bees or lightning than sharks every year. In fact, it's the sharks that should be fearing us—for every person killed by sharks, an estimated 10 million sharks have been killed by people. Every year, at least 38 million sharks are killed for their fins, a practice that is not only cruel but wasteful: fins are removed from the shark while its still alive and the body is dumped overboard—unable to swim, it sinks to the bottom to drown, bleed to death, or be eaten alive by other fish. 

Founded in June 2009, Shark Truth is a grassroots nonprofit dedicated to promoting awareness, education and action around shark fin soup in Chinese communities. Our long-term goal is to stop the consumption of shark fin in Canada in five to ten years.  Today, you can help make a difference by supporting legislation to ban the possession, sale and consumption of shark fins in Toronto.

The consumption of shark fin soup is driven primarily by the Chinese community for dinner banquets like weddings.  The soup is known as a symbol of status and wealth. At Shark Truth, our strategy is to empower consumers to take action through contests and storytelling, helping to create a more sustainable future for sharks.

Today, you can all lend a hand in helping Harry and his fellow shark family. Sign this petition and help us keep sharks in the seas and out of our bowls. Toronto city council will vote this fall and are looking for 10,000 signatures, especially from local Toronto city dwellers before then. Please sign and spread the word!

 

Photo credit: Angela Cockayne

 

Why People Are Signing
Recent Signatures

Support Proposed Ban on Shark Fins

Dear Councillor,

I am writing to express my support for the shark fin ban introduced by Councillors John Parker, Glenn De Baeremaeker and Kristyn Wong-Tam. When it comes to the ocean, we are all citizens with a vested interest in the health of this remarkable resource. Science shows that sharks are a fundamental component of a healthy sea—but they are currently under extreme threat, mostly from shark finning. This cruel and wasteful practice does not support dietary needs but rather a tradition that was founded long before knowledge of sharks or their plight was ever known. With new knowledge comes new responsibilities, and it is time to ban the sale, possession, or consumption of shark fins around the globe.

The great city of Toronto has the opportunity to join with other forward-thinking communities on the planet, including Hawaii and Canada’s own Brantford City, in going forward with this ban. We ask for your support in this important movement. Your actions can help change the tide of destruction for sharks and lead to a healthier, more sustainable ocean.

We look forward to celebrating your leadership in this movement.

Sincerely,

[Your name]

Press Inquiries