Jules and Hayley LeBlanc Are Asking Fans To Boycott Seaworld

• PLEASE BE AWARE THAT THIS POST MENTIONS ANIMAL ABUSE AND THIS MAY BE DISTRESSING TO SOME READERS.

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Fans of Bratayley stars Jules & Hayley LeBlanc might be shocked to learn that the pair have recently decided to partner with the animal cruelty organisation ‘People’s Ethical Treatment of Animals,’ (colloquially known as ‘PETA’) and advocate for aquatic life. In a post uploaded to both of their Instagram accounts yesterday, they could be seen posing behind the words: “MAKE WAVES FOR ANIMALS. BOYCOTT SEAWORLD,” with a water effect projected onto their faces. The post's caption encouraged fans to stop supporting SeaWorld and, instead, support the orcas and dolphins suffering at the hands of SeaWorld’s treatment. The caption read: “@hayley.leblanc and I are so excited to collab with @peta and @peta2 to help animals who are exploited and suffering at SeaWorld. Orcas and dolphins belong in the ocean! We should all ghost SeaWorld and never buy a ticket.” 

On the second slide of the post, the sisters gleefully presented a billboard with their slogan “MAKE WAVES FOR ANIMALS. BOYCOTT SEAWORLD,” to a crowd of cheering people. Then, on slide three, they shouted “Boycott Sea World,” into a microphone and elicited another cheer from the crowd.

PETA is an animal rights organisation founded in 1980 to protect animals from abuse and unfair treatment. They advocate for animals not to be experimented on, eaten, worn, used in entertainment, or abused in any other way. Their mission with SeaWorld is to stop the confinement of Orcas, Whales, and Dolphins as they believe large ocean animals such as these are mistreated in confinement and deserve to live in their natural environment. On their website ‘Sea World of Hurt,’ they explain precisely why this is the case as they detail how dolphins and whales are forcibly impregnated, drugged to prevent stress-induced behaviour, housed with incompatible tankmates, exploited for the entertainment of tourists, and more. They even provide us with a very impactful 30-second clip of the animals’ living conditions and urge us to save them. 

PETA has spent the last few decades holding protests, complaining to law enforcement, and engaging with celebrities to ensure that they are heard. Jules and Hayley’s post is just the tip of the iceberg. Yet, all might not be as it seems with the well-known company. For example, journalist Lucy Uprichard from HuffingtonPost.co.uk has shown that PETA may advocate for the well-being of animals at the very expense of human beings. In an article from 2013, she described the heinous and offensive marketing campaigns of PETA which have involved body shaming, over-sexualization, and humans being injured and handcuffed to represent animals. These marketing campaigns have begged the question: How far is too far when you’re asking to be heard?

Many in the comments of the post are shaming the pair for showing public support for PETA, with some going as far as to say that they are out of touch. One user commented: “Oh god they’ve been sucked into the peta trap. The wildlife ecology and conservation girly in me is sobbing,” while another commented “This is extremely disappointing. It is evident no research on the organization you are collaborating with or the institution you are trying to harm was done.” 

Other commenters are expressing disappointment that the pair haven’t been vocal about other pressing issues such as the conflict in Palestine. For example, one commenter said “wish you spoke up about this for Palestine… 🍉” and another said, “How bout you post about Palestine.” However, it is important to note that a reply to one of these comments has stated that Jules has reposted a post in support of Palestine previously, even if she has not created a post of her own. 

The image above was uploaded to pexels.com for free use by Soly Moses. No changes were made to the material.

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Please do not send any hate to Jules, Hayley or PETA. This article was uploaded for educational purposes and I do not condone any hateful messages being sent to those mentioned. Likewise, I will not accept any hate in the comment section of this post and your comment will be deleted if it is not constructive. You may have conversations as long as you use constructive criticism and do not use any offensive terms. Thank you.