Written by Grace Brosofsky
When I visited SeaWorld in fourth grade, I quite honestly loved watching the orcas that seemed more akin to cuddly aquatic pandas than any "killers." The whales’ performance projected a sense of splendor, but three years later, another child had a drastically different experience that drew attention to a rarely seen side of SeaWorld’s orca shows. This boy was named Bobby Connell, and he watched as a whale named Tilikum took the life of trainer Dawn Brancheau. Brancheau’s death not only left Bobby and many others with tragic memories but also led to legal battles resulting in the verdict that SeaWorld trainers should not interact with killer whales in the water. SeaWorld appealed this ruling in hopes of resuming its “waterwork” program, raising the question of whether humans are meant to share the water with captive killer whales – a question that we can only reasonably answer with “no."
View my Prezi below for a visual accompaniment for this article
SeaWorld’s orca programs are inherently flawed in several ways, revealing the issues of whales performing with human trainers. Even before Brancheau lost her life, the marine park possessed knowledge of the dangers posed by killer whales, especially Tilikum, a whale involved in a total of three human deaths (Secretary 20). However, SeaWorld continued to breed its deadliest orca (Berg). Because over half of SeaWorld’s orcas descended from a whale described by the park itself as unsuitable for human interaction, hazardous working conditions are inevitable, but the company contradicted its own statement that “animal behavior…cannot always be controlled” when it claimed that it could prevent future tragedy (Berg; Secretary 27-28). SeaWorld’s proposed safety solutions, such as providing trainers with canisters of extra oxygen for emergency situations called “Spare Air,” veil rather than adequately address the key threats faced by employees (“Company”). “Spare Air” is a faulty resolution for many reasons; for example, Brancheau and other attack victims did not even die from a lack of oxygen, and trainers could not feasibly use the equipment during the rapid, abrupt motion involved in a killer whale attack (Berg). In defense of the idea that its programs are acceptable for future use, SeaWorld attempts to allocate the responsibility for both recognizing and avoiding dangers to trainers, which contradicts a safety act stating that the burden of identifying dangerous working conditions lies with the employer, not the employee (Secretary 36). According to former SeaWorld employees, this is only one of the company’s many unacceptable policies (“Blowing the Whistle: Part Two” 20). Orca trainers who had once been passionate about working with captive killer whales found that their experiences at SeaWorld led them to agree upon a stunning conclusion: “There is no legitimate reason to keep these animals in captivity…” (“Blowing the Whistle: Part Two” 20). These trainers remembered following the park’s instructions to tell audiences fabricated information about the well-being of orcas to mask the true nature of killer whale captivity, implementing an unethical SeaWorld policy revealed in an excerpt from a training manual that instructs employees to consciously lie by stating, “If people ask you about a particular animal that you know has passed away, please say ‘I don’t know’” (“Blowing the Whistle: Part One” 19; “Avoid”). SeaWorld’s lack of transparency demonstrates the company’s recognition that if the general public possessed knowledge of the harsh realities of its programs, few would want to see the performances of humans with captive orcas.
Ultimately, the facts point to one conclusion – the
death of Dawn Brancheau cannot be excused as a random accident; it was the
product of the known and unavoidable problems with humans and killer whales
sharing the tank as a stage, providing little justification for SeaWorld’s
appeal to again implement its waterwork program. Making a decision to resume a
show with proven potential to kill trainers would contradict both standards of
safety in the American workplace and the basic standards of reason and morality
that govern our everyday lives. The reason is simple: a good show is not worth
the price of death.
To be continued...
The sad but true story of SeaWorld goes far deeper than the unavoidable hazards of human-whale interaction during performances. Ironically, SeaWorld capitalizes on the love people have for orcas that draws them to watch the animals in awe, but the largely hidden real-life stories of SeaWorld's orcas can only break the hearts of audiences who care about the park's aquatic "performers," just as they broke the hearts of many former trainers. While I would love to think the messages about appreciating killer whales preached through SeaWorld's performances accurately reflected the park's practices, realities such as the forced separation of calves from interconnected orca families and whale deaths and scars related to the trauma of captivity do not fit the mission of caring for the animals. Watch for an article coming up soon on the heartbreaking experiences of whales who spend unnatural lives in cells of water. Also, please visit http://theorcaproject.wordpress.com/ or watch the film Blackfish to get the facts on the inner workings of the captive orca industry - and the inner lives of the orcas, incredibly sentient animals who in many ways lose their lives in the limelight.
Works
Cited
"Avoid Buzzwords.” PBS.org. WGBH Educational Foundation, n.d. Web. 19 Nov. 2012.
Berg, Samantha. “Exclusive Interview #3:
Former SeaWorld Trainer Samantha Berg and the Perils of Orca Captivity (Part
2).” The Orca Project. Orca Project
Corp, 14 Mar. 2011. Web. 19 Nov. 2012.
“Blowing the Whistle: Part One of Two.” Whale and Dolphin (Summer 2012): 18-21.
Print.
“Blowing the Whistle: Part Two of Two.” Whale and Dolphin (Fall 2012): 18-21.
Print.
“Company Story - From an Idea to Saving
Lives.” Spare Air - The Smallest
Redundant SCUBA System Available with Enough Air to Get You to the Surface in
an Out-of-Air Emergency. Submersible Systems, Inc., n.d. Web. 19 Nov. 2012.
Edwards, Laurel. “Tilikum - Killer Whale.” Photograph. Flikr. Yahoo! Inc., 9 Mar. 2008. Web. 25 November 2012.
Michelle. “SeaWorld Orca Section.” Webs, a Vistaprint Company. Freewebs, 16
July. Web. 25 November 2012.
Watching orcas perform at SeaWorld,
Orlando. Personal photograph by author. July 2012.
Secretary of Labor v. SeaWorld of
Florida, LLC. 10-1705. Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. 2011. U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. U.S.
Government Printing Office, Digital Media Service, n.d. Web. 19 Nov. 2012.
