Just seconds after two women climbed into a bathtub, naked, on a busy sidewalk in midtown Manhattan, dozens of reporters and hundreds of pedestrians descended upon them to snap photos and take video of their bold (and cold) protest against Macy’s.

Photo: Donny Moss

PETA organized the street spectacle to protest Macy’s inclusion of a SeaWorld float in its annual Thanksgiving Day Parade. TV host Jane Velez-Mitchell posted this report from the protest:

When asked by Jane why she was protesting in the frigid weather, one of the naked orcas said, “This is just an hour of our time. Orcas spend their entire lives in the equivalent of a bathtub.”

Activists protest SeaWorld float at Rose Bowl Parade

On its website, SeaWorld of Hurt, PETA says, “SeaWorld enslaves animals in small tanks at marine parks around the country, where they are forced to perform unnecessary tricks for “entertainment.” It’s a business built on the suffering of intelligent, social animals who are denied everything that is natural and important to them.”

Urge Macy’s to cancel SeaWorld float in Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Please use this form to send a letter to the CEO of SeaWorld asking that he release their orcas to coastal sanctuaries.

In 2012, the Mayor of Bogotá banned bullfighting following a provocative animal rights campaign. It was a major victory for the community — and, of course, for the bulls.

Anti-bullfight protest in Bogota before Mayor banned them (photo: REUTERS/Fredy Builes)

Pro-bullfight forces have, however, been fighting back ever since. In a show of solidarity with their counterparts in Colombia, bullfighters from around the world staged a rally in Bogotá on November 13th to demand that the Mayor re-open the city’s arena for bullfights.

Hundreds attend pro-bullfighting rally in Bogota, Colombia

In 2012, the Mayor suspended the contract between the city-owned arena and the Bullfighting Corporation of Bogotá, which led to a de-facto ban on bullfights. In spite of mounting support for bullfights, he appears to be resolute in his opposition. In August, when bullfighters went on a hunger strike, he said, “public spaces should be used for activities of life, not death.”

In 2013, two bullfighters were killed in Northern Colombia.

The pro-bullfight rally in mid-November was held two months after Colombia’s Constitutional Court ruled that the Mayor’s ban on bullfights violates people’s “right to artistic expression.” In its ruling, the Court gave the city a “six-month period to resume bullfighting.” As a next move, the Mayor will likely support a public referendum that, if passed, would supersede the court’s decision and officially outlaw bullfighting in the city.

The activists will not accept the return of bullfights lying down. Or, perhaps they will protest the possible return of bullfights by lying down.

Activist lie down in street to protest bullfights in Colombia

Please sign the petition to oppose the re-introduction of bullfights in Bogotá, Colombia.

In what promises to be the largest protest in history for a captive orca, the Miracle March for Lolita will take place at the Miami Seaquarium on January 17th, 2015. Lolita, who was stolen from her pod off the coast of Washington in 1970 when she was four, has been living in the smallest orca tank in the world for 44 years.

Lolita at the Miami Seaquarium

For the first 10 years, Lolita had a killer whale companion, Hugo, who reportedly died by pounding his head against the side of the tank. Since 1980, she has been alone, unable to interact with members of her own species or engage in any natural behaviors. Lolita can’t even dive because the the tank to which she is confined is shallower than the length of her body.

One of the Miracle March for Lolita organizers, Robin Jewell, says that over 1,500 people have signed up to participate on Facebook alone and that a film will be made to document the event. The goal, she says, is to shine a national spotlight on Lolita’s plight in an effort to liberate and return her to her pod. Lolita’s mother is still alive, and, even after 44 years, Lolita continues to vocalize in the calls used only by her family, which should help her reintegrate into her pod.

Seattle on Worldwide Day of Protests for Lolita

In addition to the grass roots movement to free Lolita, advocacy groups are using legal strategies to liberate her. The Animal Legal Defense Fund, PETA and the Orca Network have petitioned the National Marine Fisheries Service to send her home on the grounds that her pod is protected as an endangered species. To date, Lolita has been denied the same protection as her family. The groups have also sued the USDA because Lolita is kept in a tank that is smaller than the minimum size required by the Animal Welfare Act and has no orca companion or shelter from the sun.

Lolita at Miami Seaquarium

If and when Lolita is liberated, she will be transported by plane to a coastal sanctuary near her pod where she will be rehabilitated and, if possible, transitioned back into the wild. The Orca Conservancy and Orca Network have  published detailed plans for Lolita’s release.

The Miracle March for Lolita is an expensive endeavor, as the City of Miami is charging organizers for police officers, fireman, lane closures and other services. Please donate to help make this march a success.

In addition, please urge Miami Seaquarium owner Palace Entertainment to liberate Lolita so that the advocacy groups can take her home: PETA petition, Petition Site, Change.org petition, Born Free petition

Attend the Miracle March for Lolita and/or tell your friends about it.

People who exploit animals for profit or entertainment should know that animal rights protests come with the territory and are a cost of doing business. But instead arguing their point of view, exploiters often resort to vulgar personal attacks that validate the very argument that the activists are making — that they are abusive people.

Horse-drawn carriage driver in New York City

Personal attacks are quite common, but they’re rarely caught on camera. The few incidents that have been captured show the true colors of people who gratuitously exploit and abuse animals:

Fur vendor says, “Drop dead, you faggot. Get AIDS and die.”

Horse-drawn carriage driver says to Latina protesters, “What a whore you are. Are you a married woman with children, or are you barren? This one might have six or seven kids because, you know . . .”

A rodeo supporter in Canada says to a protester, “I like the color you are because it comes out of my ass. I will fucking blow your country up, you fucking shit-skinned goof.”

https://youtu.be/BXss9yuwZRQ

A horse-drawn carriage drivers says, “You are one of those faggots. I’m not into guys, man. I don’t fuck guys.”

In the early 1990s, the Ku Klux Klan conducted membership drives at pigeon shooting events. In a video highlighting some of the violent attacks against them, the animal rights group SHARK noted that “the kind of people who shoot pigeons tossed out of boxes are the perfect candidates for those hate organizations.”

KKK at pigeon shooting event

Perhaps some animal exploiters employ personal attacks because they can’t argue on the merits of the issue. Activists, on the other hand, have the truth on our side. We should therefore stick to the issue and avoid the temptation to fight back with personal attacks in the heat of the moment.

The documentary film Blackfish sparked a movement to free catpive whales that has spread like wildfire into the mainstream public. As SeaWorld attempts to douse the flames in an effort to protect the multi-billion dollar empire it built on the backs of orcas, a shareholder lawsuit against the company is fanning them to greater heights. In 2014, SeaWorld stock has dropped about 50%, and attendance is down almost 5%.

SeaWorld San Diego (photo: Mike Blake/Reuters)

How did SeaWorld’s stock price, reputation and popularity decline so quickly? It was the combination of a killer documentary that aired on mainstream TV (CNN) and a relentless campaign by animal rights activists worldwide to expose the cruelty of orca captivity. The animal rights community is bringing SeaWorld to its knees.

As SeaWorld puts bandaids on the gaping wound of orca exhibits, such as announcing plans for bigger tanks, activists are ratcheting up the campaign against the company.

Wild orcas  swim up to 100 miles/day

In the streets, protests are being staged at SeaWorld parks; at parades which feature SeaWorld floats; and at meetings with SeaWorld executives. A massive protest at the Miami Seaquarium, where the orca Lolita lives by herself in the smallest enclosure in the country, is planned for January 17th, 2015. Already, almost 500 people have signed up to participate.

Photo: Reuters/Shannon Stapleton

The battle to liberate captive orcas is reminiscent of the campaign to legalize gay marriage. On both issues, activists have relentlessly educated the public about an injustice, and they have complimented that effort with litigation, lobbying and street activism. It is because of activists that gay marriage is a foregone conclusion in the United States, and it is because of activists that orcas captivity will be outlawed.

Approximately 52 orcas are being held captive in aquariums in the U.S., Argentina, France, Spain, China, Japan and Russia. Coastal sanctuaries can accommodate these orcas when they are liberated.

Urge Macy’s to cancel SeaWorld’s float it the Thanksgiving Day Parade

To find out how you can lend your voice to captive orcas, please visit Blackfish.