RIGHTS FOR ALL LIFE?

For decades, the freedom of wildlife from captivity has been fought for. At the Vancouver Aquarium a cetacean ban was finally achieved.

Will humans ever end their centuries old abuses of humans, nonhumans and ecosystems? Since the 70s, humans have decimated mammals, birds, fish, amphibians and reptiles to approx 68% since 1970.

Re: US Entertainment Company Buys Vancouver Aquarium:

According to CBC: ”US based Herschend Enterprises ... owns a dozen theme parks, amusement parks, water parks and aquariums in the southern United States. It has been criticized for managing Stone Mountain Park in Georgia, which has been a gathering spot for white supremacists for decades. The park has the largest Confederate monument ever built, with sculptures of confederate leaders carved into the granite mountain.” (April 2021)

We hope that racism there will end, in addition to speciesism that was already in the Vancouver Aquarium businesses!

Vancouver Aquarium History:

The zoo and aquarium animal industries must be phased out! The so called “animal ambassadors” for “conservation” have not protected wild populations that are rapidly declining. Instead of spending never ending millions of dollars on animal prisons the money must be spent on saving natural habitats!

Covid-19 taught many humans about isolation and no social contact that captive wildlife have endured for over a hundred years! It’s barbaric and the inhumanity must end!

The Vancouver Aquarium (VA) must end their captivity and replace all animals with modern non animal educational displays as seen at places such as Science World.

The Facts:

1. Stanley Park Zoo expansion plans were stopped because of public opposition to captivity! The zoo was closed and people enjoyed wildlife living freely in the park.

The VA “otter pools” did not clarify that it could include river otters that could be captured “nuisance ones”. Does the VA still have plans to include beaver(s).  Why? There is a natural beaver dam at Beaver Lake!

2. Vancouver Aquarium started the Orca Slave Trade!

Inthe 60s, the VA’s barbaric harpooning of an endangered orca to use as a model for a sculpture started the orca circuses. It was not intended to nor did it change public perception as claimed by aquarium propagandists. The public were misled about the suffering and deaths. They were not told how orcas lived in the wild with their families. The VA pro captivity business resulted in at least 54 deaths of cetaceans mainly from the now endangered orcas!

There have been lots of VA businesses over the years. This includes managing the Oceanographic in Spain that has wild caught cetaceans, Sea World type shows and providing cetaceans to EU aquariums. They had a beluga breeding program with Sea Worlds.

3. Aquarium Expansions

All of the major VA expansions and most programs have been funded with public tax monies through Provincial and Federal government grants. Their park land lease was only $40,000 annually while their rent free “rescue” facility sat on waterfront land at the foot of Vancouver’s Main Street.

4. Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation

Any Marine Mammal Rescue Program would continue. There are  joint rescue efforts involving governments, companies, NGOs, and many others. The “150 marine mammals” the VA say they rescue every year are mainly seals who were kept at the VA off site location. Only a few cetaceans have also been kept there. Rescues centers must not be in a noisy, busy public aquarium. Cetaceans could be kept in sea pens if longer rehab is needed.

The aquarium and zoo industries have for decades claimed "rescues" could not be released so they could keep them for "entertainment" and to use in unnecessary experiments that gets them lucrative grants!

5. Stop Captive and Wild Animal Experiments!

A lot of money is made from the VA research business! Numerous sea lions and others were captured for UBC Experiments. Of the 22 Sea lions many were sent to other labs/prisons.

A VA meeting in 2017, that included the US Navy, looked at how to get lucrative research grants by treating captives and "rescues" as "untapped resources".

Decades of “research” have not saved the Southern Resident Killer Whales.  LET THEM BE! Stop Barbaric, Inhumane Research! See Petition: https://www.change.org/p/wilbur-ross-thesec-doc-gov-orcas-must-not-be-mistreated-like-lab-animals

6. Ocean Wise – Not So Wise “Sustainable” Seafood!

Fish and other seafood have been decimated world wide . We all must be Ocean Wiser. Promoting sea food dinner parties at VA etc. can include species that UBC scientists have stated are,in fact, not sustainable. In addition, there is the by catch additional depletion associated with all commercial fishing. Targeting any presently socalled “sustainable” stocks can lead to their depletion. There are vegan “sea food” alternatives that are truly eco friendly.

7. Shoreline Cleanup Programs was not the VA!

The International Coastal Cleanup was started in 1984 by the US Ocean Conservancy. Every year hundreds of countries gather to clean up beaches and oceans. It involves countless local volunteer community groups. The VA started in 1994.

8. A New Eco Friendly Education Center

Famous Oceanographer Jacques Cousteau said, “ the educational benefit of watching a dolphin in captivity would be like learning about humanity only by watching prisoners in solitary confinement. 

There are a variety of advanced non animal displays and technologies to educate everyone about preserving our planet without captivity. The VA can learn from Science World and the BC Museum with changing education shows from dinosaurs to whales. The VA can stop the old Victorian menagerie approach which exploited living beings and use modern educational tools to truly connect all to the complexity of nature.

Act Now!

We urge people, the Provincial Government and the Federal Government to stop funding decades of animal exploitation and captivity at the Vancouver Aquarium! And to support an Eco Friendly Animal Free Education Center!

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