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Kelly Slater wrote a contentious letter to Sea World which PETA had planned to present at a shareholders only meeting this week. The letter, calling for the release of Sea World’s captive Orcas, suggested Sea World could regain respect from the public by taking a step in ending animal suffering:
“My name is Kelly Slater, and I’m here on behalf of PETA. The veil has been lifted on SeaWorld. All the ads in the world won’t change what the public now knows to be true: that the company imprisons highly intelligent, emotionally complex, social animals in tiny, barren concrete tanks, which leads to aggression and disease.
“SeaWorld is experiencing declining attendance and revenue, and dozens of companies, including Southwest Airlines, Panama Jack, and Mattel, have recently ended partnerships with SeaWorld. As a professional surfer, I’m lucky and privileged to be able to spend the majority of my time in the ocean-it’s the place where I feel most at home, and thus, I feel an obligation to protect that which I have a voice in influencing.
“Please, tell us, when will SeaWorld allow the animals it holds captive to return to their home — the ocean — by retiring them to a seaside sanctuary? And wouldn’t this at least be viewed, if nothing else, as a public relations win for you? By righting the wrongs you have committed in the name of corporate profit for so many years, you may actually be able to recoup some of the respect that has been lost in the eyes of the public and work toward an end to the problem of animal suffering. Thank you.”
While People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, which owns shares of the publicly traded company, had planned to submit the letter in the Sea World’s online-only meeting. Now they are exploring legal options against Sea World, as the website hosting the meeting wouldn’t accept the letter written by Slater. PETA sent the Orlando Sentinel a screenshot of what appeared to be the website for the investor meeting. “There was a problem submitting your question!” it said. Meanwhile, Sea World executives responded to a similar question in the same online-only meeting, saying “sea pens” similar to the pens Slater eludes to, create “uncontrollable exposure to pollution, ocean debris and life-threatening pathogens in ocean waters” making them “an unhealthy living environment for any of our animals.”
