PETA Statement: Southwest Ends SeaWorld Partnership After Three-Year PETA Campaign

For Immediate Release:
July 31, 2014

Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382

In light of the news that Southwest Airlines is ending its controversial partnership with notorious marine amusement park SeaWorld, PETA President Ingrid E. Newkirk has released the following statement. PETA—whose motto says, in part, that “animals are not ours to use for entertainment”—has been calling on Southwest to end the partnership in light of SeaWorld’s widely condemned cruelty to orcas, as shown in the documentary Blackfish, since 2011.

“Champagne corks were popping at PETA today when we heard that Southwest will no longer support SeaWorld and will repaint its planes,” Newkirk says. “While we travel all the time, the orcas and other animals at SeaWorld are imprisoned for life, with no opportunity to return to their ocean homes or see their families again. The second I heard the good news, I knew that I’d be booking my next trip on Southwest—and kind people around the world no doubt feel the same.”

More information about PETA’s campaign is available at SeaWorldOfHurt.com.