I have to admit that when I first heard about Hayden Panettiere and her whole saving whales from Japanese fisherman thing, I wasn’t really all that impressed. Hayden and a group called Save the Whales used a surfboard to paddle into a cove in southwestern Japan near Taiji where dolphins were being corralled to be slaughtered and eaten. The group was blocked by a fishing boat and had to turn back. Unusual publicity stunt, right? Especially after those pictures of her crying were plastered all over the news. But hearing Panettiere talk about it over time, it because pretty clear to me that she not only cared about saving whales, but was incredibly passionate about it. As a result of her activities, a warrant was issued for her arrest in Japan. Hayden hasn’t backed down, and this past weekend joined a protest in Washington DC to stop whale hunting.

The 18-year-old Heroes star, speaking without notes, told the crowd, “Not only are these animals being cruelly slaughtered, the meat is contaminated by huge levels of mercury,” reports The Washington Post’s Reliable Source column, which likened the Heroes star to a latter-day Jane Fonda – though less politically controversial. Continued Panettiere at the rally: “And we’re not taking a stand because Japan is one of our biggest allies in the war on terror, but Australia is an ally and they’ve told Japan what they think, and good on them!”

As for her confronting Japanese fisherman last fall, to protest the killing of dolphins – the incident let to a warrant for her arrest – Panettiere told the crowd at the rally: “I was wearing a wetsuit and shoes. I was like if I’m going to jail I ain’t going to jail in a bikini.” Panettiere, spokesperson for the Save the Whales Again! Campaign, added: “At one point this baby [dolphin] popped its head up and looked at me. To know what was going to happen and to know that I couldn’t stop it is just such a helpless feeling.

[From People]

Today Hayden Panettiere and Save the Whales will take their campaign to the Norwegian, Japanese, and Icelandic embassies. Hayden also created a charity, Panettiere’s Closet, where she sells her clothing and accessories Heroes. The money is donated to the Whaleman Foundation. I’ve been waiting for Hayden Panettiere to turn into Lindsay Lohan. It just seemed like an inevitability, and she has a stage mom who’s supposedly worse than Dina Lohan. As soon as Panettiere turned 18 she was out and about with much older Heroes costar Milo Ventimiglia. I figured it was a matter of weeks before she was in rehab. But instead she and Milo seem to have a pretty stable, sane relationships, and she’s risked her life to help save helpless animals. It seems like she’s proving you can be an actress, have fun and be popular with the tabloids, but still be a decent person who cares about things bigger than photo ops. Good for her.

Picture note by Jaybird: Hayden Panettiere arrives at the ‘Save the Whales Again’ rally in Dupont Circle in Washington, D.C., and signs autographs on her way to make a speech on Sunday. Images thanks to Splash Photos.