Let it be known, we are demanding that SeaWorld Entertainment pay reparations to the State of Washington for the death and destruction of the Southern Resident Orca population caused by the capture and removal of orcas, in order to fund expenses incurred by the State to restore the population to previous levels.

Whereas reparations means to make amends, to repair, and to compensate, those who were wronged;

We demand reparations on behalf of the descendants of the orcas killed and captured by SeaWorld.

Whereas SeaWorld was built with and continues to enjoy the benefits of the captured orcas and their descendants;

Whereas, between 1964 and 1976 hundreds of orcas were captured, of which 36 - 45 were taken into captivity and at least 11 were killed;

Whereas Washington State filed a law suit protesting at the captures, since the use of seal bombs and aircraft to 'buzz' the whales violated the capture permit. Sea World's involvement with the captures was only revealed at this stage,

Whereas, this devastating practice enabled SeaWorld to rise to global prominence, to accumulate massive amounts of wealth, and to become the world's amusement park business model;

Whereas, In 1989, fearing that stronger regulations proposed by the Department of Commerce's National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) might become law, the captivity industry lobbied to 'restructure' and 'streamline' the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) regulations, which culminated in the 1994 amendments to the MMPA, which handed over jurisdiction of captive marine mammals from NMFS to what was regarded as the understaffed, underfunded United States Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), which is responsible for enforcing the Animal Welfare Act;

Whereas, previously, captive orcas and other captive cetaceans were the property of the American people, they are now the property of the marine parks;

Therefore, we sign this petition to demand that SeaWorld make reparations to the State of Washington on behalf of the remaining endangered orca population in hopes that recovery is still possible.

 Thank you for signing this petition and for encouraging all others to sign it, too.