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Protesters target bookstore after signing canceled

A group of protesters took aim at a popular book store in La Jolla Saturday evening.

LA JOLLA (CBS 8) - A group of protesters took aim at a popular bookstore in La Jolla Saturday evening.

They were upset because the owners of the store canceled an appearance by an author who wrote a book critical of SeaWorld's killer whale shows.

According to management, the decision to cancel the author's appearance last week at Warwick's Bookstore in La Jolla wasn't easy, though they felt it was necessary.  

John Hargrove, a former SeaWorld trainer, was scheduled to speak last Wednesday to promote his book that criticizes SeaWorld.

A day before his appearance, SeaWorld released a five year old video of Hargrove using racial slurs while under the influence of alcohol. 

The cancellation didn't sit well with some local anti-SeaWorld activists who showed up at the bookstore to protest the decision.

The half dozen or so protesters criticized the bookstore for giving in to what they say is a SeaWorld smear campaign.

However, Julie Slavinsky says the protesters are misguided in thinking the store is pro-SeaWorld.

Warwick's hasn't pulled Hargrove's book from its store and insists that the conversation about SeaWorld's practices is one to be had.

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