Nick Cannon Rails Against SeaWorld and Audience Agrees
Nick Cannon is many things. He’s an actor … a television and radio host … a musician … a writer … an executive producer … a comedian … a father of twins … all of that, yet he’s also an everyman—a cursing everyman. Like so many of us, Nick watched Blackfish and was stopped in his tracks, swearing never again to go to SeaWorld “or any other place like that.”
Nick isn’t alone in his disdain for SeaWorld. He joins a long list of celebrities who have spoken up about the arcane idea of imprisoning sentient animals. Here are a few of our favorites:
Evan Rachel Wood and a friend shared a certain finger with SeaWorld while stuck in L.A. traffic.
Aaron Paul has a way of being charming, even in his profound disapproval.
Game of Thrones star Maisie Williams proudly shares the same feelings as Harry Styles.
And who can forget Jason Biggs‘ commercial?
In the wild, orcas share sophisticated social relationships, working together to find food and traveling up to 100 miles of ocean every day. At SeaWorld, they’re housed in incompatible groups inside tiny tanks and drugged to manage their stress-induced aggressive behavior. Nearly 40 orcas have died on SeaWorld’s watch—and not one of old age.
In addition to the long-suffering orcas, SeaWorld also imprisons dozens of other sentient beings, such as bottlenose dolphins, who endure psychological distress and frustration from captivity and who are still being bred.
The tiny tanks that captive whales and dolphins are confined to leave them little to do but swim in circles, ram their heads against the walls, or float listlessly.
Like Nick, as well as countless other celebrities and noncelebrities on social media (have you looked up #SeaWorldSucks on Twitter or Instagram lately?), people are turning their backs on marine-mammal captivity, and no flashy roller coaster or “revamped” orca show is going to change that. The orca prisons are failing. SeaWorld’s only hope for survival lies in PETA’s shareholder resolution calling for the animals to be released into seaside sanctuaries.
What You Can Do
Join hundreds of thousands of people in calling for the release of captive orcas today.
