Activists Install Haunting Orca ‘Graveyard’ Outside Thomas Cook AGM
Dozens of activists installed a haunting orca “graveyard” outside Thomas Cook’s annual general meeting in London this morning. Each “gravestone” represented one of the 41 orcas who have died on SeaWorld’s watch, reminding company executives that selling tickets to the marine park supports orca abuse.
While the demonstration was taking place outside, two representatives of PETA US attended the meeting, where they demanded to know when Thomas Cook would finally drop its promotions of SeaWorld. PETA US recently became a shareholder in the company so that its representatives could be present at the meeting and address the board officially.
The demonstration is part of PETA’s campaign urging the travel provider to sever all ties with SeaWorld. Previous actions have included protests outside Thomas Cook stores across the UK and Germany, letters sent to the company by Sharon Osbourne and Paul O’Grady, and over 22,000 e-mails from PETA supporters – all urging the company to take a stand against the marine park’s orca prisons.
Thomas Cook recently made progress by suspending its online promotions of SeaWorld. This is a step in the right direction, but it must now end all ticket sales to the marine park if it’s to be a leader in animal welfare. While orcas in the wild form complex relationships, work together to find food, and traverse up to 140 miles of ocean every day, those at SeaWorld are housed in incompatible groups inside tiny tanks and have even been given the drug diazepam to manage stress-induced aggressive behaviour.
What You Can Do
If you haven’t already done so, please contact Thomas Cook and urge it to drop SeaWorld entirely.
If you’re interested in taking part in future demonstrations for this campaign or others like it, please join our Action Team today.
