Andrew Kenway
Team Member

hen you hear of the Canadian Fur
Wrrate you might think of 17th
century people wearing beaver-pelt hats
and a whole lot of cultural tension. It’s
undeniably one of the cornerstones of
Canada’s economy in its developing years
and well after. The modern fur-trade, after
having fallen for decades, is once again
suddenly booming. This is both because
of new Chinese capitalists revitalizing the
industry and, of course, to the increasing
rarity of the Canadian Polar Bear.

Wearing furs has been a status symbol

long recognized throughout much of
European history, as is making sure you
collect one of an animal before they’re
frustratingly extinct. While wearing it once

might have bragged “I have disposable
income,’ when confronted with the
modern world, the sentiment simply shows
how out of touch the person wearing it
is. With a lot of modern fashion finding
itself more interested in the wardrobe-
habits of the lower classes, the idea of
wearing fur out in public to anything but
a luxury event seems laughable. Even

for a major event, it’s something rarely
looked upon as favourable. To some,

a dead fox hanging around someone’s
neck might just seem like the tailor
hadn’t finished turning it into clothes.

Even in popular culture, it is a trend that
seems to have rarely gained much favour.
It is done simply because it’s expensive
and supposedly something rich people
are expected to do. However, considering
that the only public advocate for fur trade
in popular culture in recent years was

the changing

Canadian fur trade

Me ies os
Cruella Deville, it’s safe to say it’s not a
particularly fond stance to take. While
these ancient fashion trends are less likely
to invite a bucket of red paint than they
might’ve in the nineties, one is still likely

to receive a barrage of disapproving glares.

Despite the negative connotations of pelts
as clothing, there’s no shortage of demand
for the pelts from across the Pacific.

It is hardly a new thing for the wealthy
to use their means to obtain status
symbols, from massive homes and shiny
cars to whatever rich people happen to
be into that week. It has become obvious
that the polar bear, in all its rare glory,
has become one of these items. Canada
personally supports this trade, narrowly
stopping an attempt from Russia and the
United States attempting to put an end to
the international polar bear fur trade.

Considering how much these skins go
for, it is not hard to imagine why selling
them has become such an enticing form
of employment. National Post reported
that in one of these auctions, one polar
bear skin sold for a record-breaking
22,000 dollars to one buyer, who intended
to mount it and sell it again for 70,000
to 90,000 overseas. While the threat to
polar bears still remains an undefined
and ominous one, the industry brought
in 706 million dollars in exports in 2012.

t is a dangerous approach to how we
handle one of our potentially endangered
species. While it might be difficult to turn
down cash that could pay off half a student
loan ina single pelt, it remains a dangerous
precedent to bhow Canada handles species
that have be hunted to near extinction.