Protesting is an essential part of life that needs to happen if you want to get somewhere and stand up for your rights. There have been a million things that people have protested in these past years, including the inauguration of Donald Trump, legalization of marijuana, civil rights, etc. The people that decide to get out there and try to make a difference are very outspoken and passionate. They are the people changing this world. I can honestly say that I have never protested anything, but I definitely should have. A couple years ago, a bunch of nasty stuff got released about SeaWorld’s treatment of their animals.
The news that was released was absolutely devastating. Since I was about 6 years old, I knew what i wanted to do when I grew up. I wanted to work with marine animals. I had such a passion for those beautiful sea creatures. When I was 6, my family and I took a vacation to Florida. One of the first places we went to was SeaWorld. I just fell in love with the dolphins show and the orca show. I knew that’s what I wanted to do for the rest of my life was working with marine animals. I always thought that I would want to work at SeaWorld, but that has changed since I learned about the treatment that they have for some of their animals.
There was a lot of stuff released about SeaWorld’s orcas. Right now, there are 4 orcas at SeaWorld who were kidnapped. There was nothing wrong with them in the ocean. They were taken away from their families and put in captivity to do shows. That is so inhumane and cruel. I have also learned that the orcas suffer really bad sunburns, but the staff doesn’t treat them. They cover up the burns with black zinc oxide so it looks like there is nothing wrong with them. The burns are pretty bad but you would never know because the black zinc oxide makes the orcas look fine.
Being held in captivity is not healthy for the orcas. The average male orca in the ocean lives a good 60-70 years. The average female orca lives a good 80-100 years. Sometimes, they live longer than 100 years out in the wild. The median age of an orca in captivity is only 9 years. They are taking away so many years of the orcas lives by keeping them in captivity to perform shows for tourists. How is that fair? I learned about all of this and I sat back and did nothing. Other people were out there protesting this issue and they won.
SeaWorld announced that once the last orcas they have in captivity pass away, they will not train or capture anymore orcas. They want to leave them alone in the wild to live long, healthy lives. I feel bad that I didn’t do anything about it even though my feelings were very strong about this topic. In The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner, Judy Grahn said that protesters are heroes. She defined heroes as involved, cowardice, and detached.? (page 1129) I can’t describe myself with any of these traits because I didn’t participate in the protest. I am not the type of person to get into this kind of stuff or protest about anything.
I did not support the women’s march against Trump because I just don’t agree with it and it got them nowhere. They got millions of people out there but what did they accomplish? Nothing. These protesters ? engaged in passive resistance. (page 1129) The protest against SeaWorld’s mistreatment of animals meant something and they accomplished something. They got Sea World’s attention and they put a stop to the mistreatment of orcas. That is the type of protest I would have loved to get into and be apart of. The people that protested this issue were peaceful and made signs.
They made petitions to stop SeaWorld from abusing their beloved orcas. They wrote them peaceful letters and made phone calls. They didn’t break windows or burn cars like the people involved in the Trump protest did. They were peaceful, respectful, and successful. That is the type of protest I would join and speak my opinion at. I want to join a protest that is going to make a positive difference for innocent animals who don’t deserve the cruel treatment they get in captivity. Like I just said, the people in this protest were very peaceful and they didn’t cause chaos among other people who want no part in it.
Some people wrote letters, some people made signs and went out into the streets, and some people took it to an extreme and refused to go to aquariums, zoos, or SeaWorld itself because they didn’t want to support animal cruelty. I can’t say that I would go that far because aquariums and zoos are my absolute favorite places to visit, but it worked. To get something in life that is difficult to obtain, sometimes you have to protest, even if you don’t want to. Part of being civilized and expressing your rights means that you are trying to do everything you don’t want to, never doing anything you want to.
Protesting is hard but a necessary part of life. So, in conclusion, protesting is an essential part of life. It gives you a chance to express your rights and yourself. The members of the SeaWorld protest did just that and they got somewhere. They protected the orcas and got them a safer life in capacity than what they had before. I unfortunately didn’t protest this topic, but I should have because I have very strong feelings about it. I am glad that these protesters made a difference and got somewhere with their work. They are the ones that are changing America.
