AAA Northeast Stops Selling Tickets to SeaWorld

This week, travel company AAA Northeast confirmed it will no longer sell tickets to marine park SeaWorld. The move comes after animal-rights groups People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and Protest SeaWorld NYC held 18 demonstrations in front of the company’s Manhattan, NY offices over the course of one year. The Northeast branch encompases AAA clubs throughout Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, and Rhode Island. “No decent business should want to be associated with an amusement park that’s still breeding dolphins and riding them around like surfboards in circus-style shows,” PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman said. “AAA Northeast made the right call in cutting ties with SeaWorld, and PETA is calling on AAA branches that haven’t yet done so to follow suit.” The 2013 release of vegan documentary Blackfish exposed the abuse marine animals are subjected to at SeaWorld causing sales and attendance at the park to plummet and led to a recently settled securities fraud lawsuit that alleged SeaWorld executives underreported the effect of Blackfish on company financials. AAA Northeast joins a growing list of travel companies—including Virgin Holidays, United, Alaska, Delta, JetBlue, Southwest, Spirit, Sunwing, and WestJet airlines—that have cut ties with SeaWorld.