Empty the Tanks is an annual day to protest keeping dolphins and whales in captivity. The business of stealing dolphins from the wild and training them to perform tricks often begins in Taiji, Japan, where hundreds of dolphins are killed each year. It is the captivity industry that subsidizes the dolphin killing.
Started by activist Rachel Carbary, Empty the Tanks demonstrations now occur worldwide, with this year demonstrations on or around May 7th in Hong Kong, Sweden, Russia, Spain, Argentina, Mexico, Japan, France, New Zealand, Canada and Ireland, as well as many cities in the US.
Often held in front of dolphinariums, this year saw demonstrations at the Baltimore National Aquarium, the Georgia Aquarium, the Brookfield Zoo, the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago, and SeaWorld in San Diego, Orlando, and San Antonio.
At Six Flags Discovery Kingdom in Vallejo, California, near San Francisco, a hearty group of 50+ demonstrators braved the rain, protesting the captive bottlenose dolphins that are housed in that dolphinarium for many years. Six Flags formerly held a lone captive orca, but public pressure led them to send that orca to SeaWorld San Diego, where at least the poor captive can experience other orcas.
The Vallejo event was organized by Lisa Robles, a volunteer with Sea Shepherd. Michael Reppy and Mark J. Palmer of the International Marine Mammal Project also participated. Between downpours, Michael managed to unfurl the huge Corky banner which stretched for more than one hundred feet along the entrance-way to Six Flags.
In all, everyone had a fine, if damp, time.
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