Celebrities such as actresses Edie Falco (left, left) and Sex and the
City actress Kristen Davis (left, right,) participated in Friday's ivory
crush and urged Americans not to buy ivory
There are only 43,000 elephants left in Tanzania, the country's government said this week.
New York passed a law in August 2014 hardening the state's
stance on the ivory trade by banning the sale of ivory and
increasing penalties for ivory sales.
New Jersey passed a similar law, which does not make an exception for antiques, right before its neighbor.
The United States still allows ivory acquired before a 1989 ban to be traded.
Legal trade in ivory is thought to often be used as a cover for illegal sales of the substance.
'Never
buy ivory. Even if they say it's antique, it isn't,' Sex in the City
actress Kristen Davis said at the event, according to USA Today
China, the largest market for ivory, is thought to be a crossroads for many illegal sales.
The
country's government said earlier this month that it is working to shut
down its legal trade, though it has not proffered any concrete plan.
Rules
from the Wildlife Service that went into effect last year banned the
commercial import of ivory with the exception of hunting trophies,
though the agency website says that it expects more restrictions on those as well.
Exceptions are also made for ivory that is part of a musical instrument.
President Obama has called for a national ban that has yet to materialize, according to National Geographic.
Opponents
include the National Rifle Association, which says a ban would be a
problem for antique gun sales and hunters who wanted to bring back ivory
from expensive but legal elephant shoots in Africa.
New York City is the largest port of entry for illegal
wildlife goods in the United States, according to the New York
Department of Environmental Conservation.
Organizers said
they hoped staging the ivory-crushing event in busy Times Square
would extend the reach of their message.
'Today's ivory crush will serve as a stark reminder to the
rest of the world that the United States will not tolerate
wildlife crimes, especially against iconic and endangered
animals,' said Sally Jewell, secretary of the US Department of
the Interior.
The government held a similar event in Denver at the end of 2013 in which six tons of ivory were crushed.
Residue of the crushed ivory will be used in a public education campaign by the Wildlife Service.
