Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus is closed. The circus held its final show after 146 years. On Sunday, 17,000 people came out to Nassau Coliseum to see the end of this circus dynasty. The show was also streamed live online.
Performers celebrated, hugged, and cried as traditional songs were sung. Circus management also thanked the public for support over the years.
The circus was forced to close after ticket sales dropped. The drop came after the show stopped using elephants. The elephant removal came after years of pressure from animal rights activists like PETA and the Humane Society of the United States.
Many families have enjoyed Ringling Bros. shows. The groups that caused the circus’s demise hold wider plans of ending human-animal contact of many forms.
