Community Corner
New Georgia Aquarium VP Allegedly Hit Dolphins, Activists Say
The aquarium responded to the accusations by praising the new hire's decades of experience and reiterated their zero tolerance policy.
A group of animal rights activists is concerned about the Georgia Aquarium’s newest hire, a man they say was caught on film abusing dolphins at a previous job.
According to WSB-TV, José Luis Barbero was allegedly seen hitting, screaming at, and kicking dolphins on a video released by the group SOS Dolphines. Barbero was a trainer at an aquarium in Spain at the time, but WSB-TV learned that he has recently been hired on as a senior vice president at the Georgia Aquarium.
The Georgia Aquarium said in a statement that staff thoroughly vetted Barbero’s 35 year career in animal training, and added that the aquarium has a zero tolerance policy regarding animal abuse.
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Watch the video in question below.
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