I can now finally say that, as of July 27, 2022, I no longer work for and have severed all connections with the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society (USA).
I have devoted my entire life to the aggressive and determined preservation and conservation of the biodiversity of marine life and our ocean since I created Sea Shepherd over fifty years ago in 1977.
Read The Scuba News Article on Paul Watson Arrest
I have gradually become less influential inside the group I founded in the United States over the past few years. My close companions were fired, my counsel was disregarded, and the directors who stood by me were dismissed from the Board of Directors. I was relegated to a paid spokesperson and denied the ability to plan campaigns or voice the strong beliefs I have held for many years—beliefs and campaigns that have built Sea Shepherd into what it is today and has always been outside of the US.
As I stated in the Watson documentary, it is my responsibility to upset the status quo, create a stir, and get people to consider the harm we are doing to the diversity and interconnectedness of marine life.
The present Board wants to convert our fleet into non-controversial research vessels rather than using our vessels to stop unlawful poachers who prey on endangered animals. While research has always played a role in Sea Shepherd’s work, it has never been and never should be our top goal. We have fulfilled a special role by acting as a bold voice against poachers on the high seas, recording and putting an end to illicit activities that would otherwise go unreported and uncontested. Sea Shepherd has always gone where others are afraid to go, said what needs to be said, and faced challenges head-on and with great determination.
I cannot, in good conscience, endorse or be a part of the new trajectory that Sea Shepherd USA’s current board has chosen. My goals and determination have not altered, and I will not yield to pressure to take a different tack or utilize a strategy that would undermine the amazing movement we have built over the past 45 years—a movement that is still expanding outside of the US.
I still support Global ships, officers, and crew and I still serve as a director of Sea Shepherd Global. I will continue to assist all other national Sea Shepherd organizations—aside from the United States—in our global campaigns by applying our distinct brand of forceful non-violence and working with authorities and non-governmental organizations.
We are Sea Shepherd. We take decisive action driven by bravery, perseverance, and inventiveness.
My future is in the hands of the global community that has built and is still building Sea Shepherd into the most powerful, fervent, and successful marine conservation organization on the face of the earth.
Captain Paul Watson
Founder – Sea Shepherd Conservation Society Canada (1977)
Founder – Sea Shepherd Conservation Society USA (1981)