What would you do if you saw a three-year-old child in a zoo enclosure with a 400-pound gorilla? Keepers at the Cincinnati Zoo were faced with this exact situation over the weekend, and their response has sparked outrage.
Zoo visitors were shocked Saturday when a small boy somehow found his way inside an enclosure and came face to face with Harambe, a 17-year-old male western lowland gorilla.
Witness Kim O’Connor said she watched on in horror as Harambe grabbed the child. “You heard the splash. People are yelling, ‘There’s a boy in the water. There’s a boy in the water,’” O’Connor told news outlet WLWT5.
Minutes later, zookeepers responded by shooting Harambe and rushing the boy to a hospital. Local media since has reported that the child has been released from the hospital after being treated for non-life-threatening injuries. The boy’s name has not been made public.
Zoo management praised the keepers for their quick response to save the child, but critics have slammed Harambe’s death as unnecessary. The Facebook group Justice for Harambe has garnered more than 4,000 likes and claims the gorilla wasn’t acting aggressively, labeling the shooting a “murder.”
On Monday the group stated, “From a supporter: If #Harambe had wanted to hurt that child, he could have done it in a millisecond. Indeed!”
You can see footage below of Harambe and the young child:
Another supporter of the group wrote, “It appeared to me the boy was in danger but it also seemed to me, the danger came from the screaming of the humans which seemed to excite Harambe.” Footage of Saturday’s crisis appeared to show Harambe dragging the boy away from the crowd of onlookers. At times, the gorilla appeared to be shielding the child.
The zoo has defended the actions of its workers, stating that the gorilla was killed in order to save the life of the child. “We are heartbroken about losing Harambe, but a child’s life was in danger and a quick decision had to be made by our Dangerous Animal Response Team,” zoo director Thane Maynard said in a statement.
Critics of the zoo argue that the response team should have tried to sedate Harambe with a tranquilizer dart. At the time of the shooting, onlooker O’Connor said, “We were hoping, hoping, they were just putting him to sleep.”
Maynard argued that a tranquilizer was not an option. “Tranquilizers do not take effect for several minutes and the child was in imminent danger,” he said. “On top of that, the impact from the dart could agitate the animal and cause the situation to get much worse”.
The creators of a Change.org petition called Justice for Harambe agree that zoo workers did the right thing and instead place blame on the parents. “This beautiful gorilla lost his life because the boy’s parents did not keep a closer watch on the child,” the petition’s organizers state.
“We … want the parents to be held accountable for the lack of supervision and negligence that caused Harambe to lose his life,” the petition reads.
Witness accounts
It’s unclear exactly how the boy was able to enter the enclosure, though witnesses said the child told his parents shortly before the incident that he wanted to jump in with the gorillas. “The little boy himself had already been talking about wanting to … get in the water. The mother’s like, ‘No, you’re not, no, you’re not,’” O’Connor told WLWT5.
According to the zoo, the child was then somehow able to climb a barrier before dropping 15 feet into the enclosure.
The Change.org petition charges that the parents should have watched their child more closely. “Witnesses claim that they heard the child state that he wished to go into the enclosure and was actively trying to breach the barriers,” the petition stated. “This should have prompted the parents to immediately remove the child from the vicinity.”
One zoo visitor, Tony Bruce, told Cincinnati.com that the incident reflects a broader problem at zoos. “Parents just aren’t paying attention to what’s going on,” he said. Another zoo visitor, Brittany Nicely, told The New York Times that the mother shouldn’t be judged too harshly. “I don’t feel like it was neglectful … she had three other kids that she was with. She had a baby in her arms. It was literally the blink of an eye,” Nicely said.
Cincinnati police do not plan to press charges against the parents. Meanwhile, others lay blame on the zoo itself. Primatologist and animal rights advocate Julia Gallucci issued a statement Sunday arguing the zoo should have had a “secondary barrier” in place.
Mourning for Harambe
Maynard has responded by stating, “The barrier that we have in place has been effective for 38 years. Nevertheless, we will study this incident as we work toward continuous improvement for the safety of our visitors and animals,” he said.
For now, Maynard said the zoo is mourning its loss. “We are all devastated that this tragic accident resulted in the death of a critically endangered gorilla,” Maynard said. “This is a huge loss for the Zoo family and the gorilla population worldwide,” he lamented.
Found in central Africa, less than 175,000 western lowland gorillas exist in the wild. Populations of the primate have been devastated by habitat destruction, mostly due to logging, mining and agriculture.
Was anyone to blame for Harambe’s death, or was it just a terrible accident? Tell us in the comments below.
— Ryan Mallet-Outtrim
Sources:
http://cincinnatizoo.org/blog/2016/05/28/media-update-gorilla-world
https://www.facebook.com/cincinnatizoo/posts/10154082080110479
https://www.change.org/p/cincinnati-zoo-justice-for-harambe
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/30/us/gorilla-killed-after-child-enters-enclosure-at-cincinnati-zoo.html
http://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2016/05/29/boy-who-fell-into-zoo-gorilla-exhibit-out-hospital/85131108
http://edition.cnn.com/2016/05/29/us/cincinnati-zoo-gorilla-shot
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-36410841
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3615099/Outrage-directed-parents-Harambe-gorilla-s-senseless-death-four-year-old-son-fell-enclosure-led-zoo-officials-fatally-shoot-animal.html
http://www.wlwt.com/news/video-gorilla-grabs-child-whos-fallen-into-habitat/39774904
What would you have done if you worked for the Zoo?
The neglectful parents should be sued by the zoo for the value of the gorilla. They are the parties responsible here. If they had tried tranquilizer darts or some other means to recover the boy without harming the gorilla and the boy had been injured or killed, the parents probably would have sued the zoo for an impressive sum of money.
Throw the parents in the moat to retrieve their son .. the animal did not put him there ..
If the gorilla wanted to kill or eat the boy he would of done it in the first second , and roughly dragging the boy around is how they handle their own children . child protective services should remove that child from the care of his incompetent and negligent parents .. how often did your parents allow you to go play with a 400 pound gorilla ??? huh
Why isn’t Black Lives Matter protesting the death of Harambe? Where’s Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton?
It is a shame…this gorilla did NOT need to be killed!!!! Ruthless! I think the zoo officials must be punished & fined as well as the parents of the child!
If this was a lil white kid the outcry would be starkly different I betcha.
nIf it had been a service dog ( same vicious wild partly tamed animal ) would it of been shot ? what if someone brings a killer self defense protective dog into the coffee shop and you uncontrolled child attacks it should the dog be killed . People do have esp women attack kill dogs .
You know what Mike? I decided to let this comment go through so that people can see for themselves what a despicable view-point this is. This is a miserable reflection of the person who is MikeR. Our community here at The Alternative Daily may have differing political views, differing health views and differing world views, but hateful we are not. Being open to a difference of opinion will only make us smarter, more intellectual and better human beings. This is not such an example. This is simply an example of a dying-out perspective from a minority of a population that we will all look back on and think “Yep, there were some hiccups in the gene pool.” – Jake
Brainless people should have to pass a test b/4 they are allowed to breed .
The zoo should of said we are gonna tranquilize Harambe you may go in first to get your son out if you want or wait to see if Harambe get upset when we dart him .. you put you child in there we want to help you get him out .. but sue your own stupidity and negligence not our Harambe he made no mistakes ..
Parents ARE responsible for their children. This is a world wide problem, a big one….. Most parents ARE NOT Parenting…….. they must take responsibility… DO NOT pass the buck. If you are not prepared to be responsible for your children… well DO NOT have children.
There is plenty of blame to go around in this case but the fact of the matter is how was this child able to get in the enclosure in the first place. How can they say it was safe when a child can breach the barriers. This family should count their lucky star that it wasn’t a croc enclosure because the child would be gone in a blink of an eye. Yes it is sad the Gorilla had to lose it’s life but what was the alternative?.
Parents should be required to pay for the replacement of zoos gorilla…what parent would bring more children to a public attraction, let alone a zoo then she can control and keep safe..
I’m old school, the safety of your children are your responsibility, no matter what. I see parents, all the time, not watching there kids when they are out somewhere. Walking down the street, in a mall, at an amusement park & at public playgrounds, where are their brains. Children are abducted, get lost & get hurt regularly because of parental in attention. Animals in a zoo are there for the enjoyment of people & to educate children about the animal world. This loss was totally unnessary, if the child’s parents were doing their job everyone would still be enjoying Harambe. I think they should have some responsibility for the loss & the zoo should go after them financially. I realize this will never replace Harambe but possibly it can save another primate for everyone to see.
Children will be children. I don’t blame the parents, but I do blame the zoo officials. The Gorilla represented a life. There was no proof the Gorilla intended to harm the child. I find killing in our society has become too acceptable. The shooting of innocent citizens, especially black young men by police shows the troubling trend in our society. In this case it’s a gorilla, but the sentiments are the same: life is worthless and meaningless. The people killed by police may have parents, children, spouses and friends who may need them, but no one speaks about these relationships. Even this Gorilla had a family unit who will miss him sorely. Shooting and killing a any living, feeling creature is unacceptable. No doubt this trend is due to the US military investing millions in violent video games and TV shows meant to indoctrinate children young to make them better killers in the army and indifferent towards fellow citizens.
This highly endangered gorilla died due to negligent parenting. The zoo should have tranquillized this beautiful creature WHO WAS BEHAVING IN THE MANNER INHERENT TO HIS FAMILY ROLE-he was protecting the child! He was a better “parent” to the child than his human parent! They could have had the sharpshooter at-the-ready IF Harambe had reacted adversely to the tranquilizer dart, but they should have TRIED to save this rare, endangered beautiful gorilla! And the parents of the child need to be assessed the cost of trying to replace him…as if a life, an endangered species life, can be replaced. What the heck was that woman doing at the zoo with 4 children without any other adult there to help her supervise them!
Lots of idiots troll the web, I saw. WTF has race of the child got to do with killing the gorilla? Lots of idiots troll the web, I see.
I’m sure the parents feel bad about the death of the gorilla. That being said if you have 4 children and one of them is an active, and apparently willful 4 year old, use an appropriate restraint. I know people don’t like them, but that kid should have been on a leash!
They should have animal trainers who work with the gorillas that can talk to the animals and calm them down. If they want to keep animals in captivity with humans around they should be able to communicate with them. The gorilla probably thought he was gifted a child to play with. Why not they give him food, female gorillas and why not a playmate child. That’s all that gorilla knew. No I don’t think they should have shot the gorilla. That gorilla shouldn’t have died it was not trying to hurt the child. I blame the parent the child was already telling her he was going to go in the water with the gorilla. How could she lose sight after child told her that. It was almost like if the mother just waited to see if his dare came true. How long did she wait before she realized he was gone. I dont buy it that the mother was already watching the other children, while holding one. Another witness said her other child was in the stroller not her arms. The parent probably lost sight while texting or something. If she can’t handle her kids then she shouldn’t be in public places where they can run away from her. To me the mother sounded to cool and calm. That’s not normal most people would be freaking out if it was their child in there. Somethings not right here.
Years ago, here in Miami, they had a place called the “Serpentarium”. It had many different kinds of snakes ranging from non-venomous to the most deadly on earth. It also had a deep pit with a cement wall around it where one could look down at a huge alligator or croc (I forget which). One day a child was sitting on the wall, possibly put there by his parents. The next thing we know is the child is in the bottom of the pit and is fatally crushed by the reptile. The owner came out immediately and killed the beast but it was too late. After that he closed the place and moved away. A good man who no longer had the heart to provide a worthwhile service and and entertainment to an adoring community. I heard that he died recently at an age somewhere around 100. He had been bitten so many times by poisonous snakes that his blood was an antidote for many types of snake venom.
This is America. Race makes a difference in EVERYTHING. Especially to white folks.
Do you read your comment before sending?
Here’s what appears to be a black man bringing up race in a gorilla story when nobody else cares anything but the child was a child. Show me your GED.
PS Momma had four children (stifled my urge to type “chillen”) at the zoo, one of whom was in her arms and one who should have been on a leash or in daddy’s arms. Take your BLM and put it where the sun don’t shine.
The zoo obviously panicked… AND, the idiot parents should be held “liable” for the death of this creature…
His name was HAAS… and, he was a good man, traumatized by that incident…
Apparently, the child expressed his intent, that WOULD make it the responsibility of the parents…
You are so right. They are forgetting them here in my area and leaving them in the back of the car all day and not see a child in the back seat when they are getting out of the car? Definitely those parents should not have the responsibility of children. There is so much pressure on couples to produce offspring to carry on their legacy and name. I was one of those parents under pressure to produce. I never wanted to be a mother but I sacrificed my goals and aspirations for 20 odd years, now it’s all about me. Society somehow feels the sacrifice should be for a lifetime, and some parents of adult children seem to agree, putting their children’s needs before theirs to the death, even when the children are married and have families of their own.
A similar event happened here in Orlando at Gatorland. The mom rested the infant on the ledge over the water where the gators were being fed for display and the child wiggled and slipped from her grip into the water and was consumed as food since it was feeding time and feeding activity. I really do believe these incidents are not always accidental. Parents don’t want the child, don’t want to be blamed for murder, so they carelessly allow such accidents and get a big payday after suing.
Institutional Racism and White Supremacy is inherent and most people don’t realize that they are exhibiting these traits because it is ingrained. Think about it.
Totally agree! Parents are not on the ball anymore from what i see.
Kids are allowed to run amuck these days and everyone else just
has to put up with them. We werent allowed to misbehave like that
when we were kids. If the child said he wanted to go in there, the
parents should have told him the danger of that. I dont care how
old the kid is. They need discipline and guidance in every detail.
Now the beloved Gorilla is dead….and for what? A bratty child and
a non-on-hand mother? They should pay and have to go to parenting
classes in between jailtime. DO NOT TRESPASS is punishable by law.
As a kid, we went to the zoo and those things NEVER HAPPENED.
NEVER! We had to actually listen to our parents.
If we didnt, we would get a paddle on the rear end.
…If they even ‘thought’ we weren’t listening.
We grew up to be good hard working human beings.
We learned respect. These kids these days dont have any of that.
Amen!
You are crazy if you think tranquillizing the Gorilla wouldn’t have caused him to crush or kill the child. They had no choice but to kill him to save the child. The childs life is worth more than an animal !!!
It sounds like they should have shot the terrible parents instead
We can all pass judgement…..parents not watching children…..inadiquet enclosure. ….tranquilize or destroy?????
Outcome is the same …..an injured child, a beautiful gorilla gone.
There is enough blame to go around but the outcome of the decision to destroy an animal that the members of the zoo have nurtured and cared for will hopefully be a learning experience.
The Cincinnati Zoo has been world renown for decades saving and promoting the safety and wellbeing of many near extinct species. The Gorillas have been at the top of their list. They lost one of their children to save another. I am convinced they took every consideration in doing so.
I pray for all to heal, learn and forgive but not forget Harambe.
How else can you explain the droves of passionless viewpoints questioning the zoo director’s decision on saving a black child’s life in the presence of a 400lb gorilla vs the child possibly being ripped to shreds? No other reasoning makes since other than institutional racism or white supremacy. If it were your child what would you do?
You re welcome to your opinion. But, had the parent been attentive the child would not have gone into the gorilla habitat and that endangered, beautiful animal would not have been senselessly murdered!
It really does not take a genius to see that too many children are allowed to run rampant. In this situation, the parents should be held accountable for what happened, no doubt about that.
My opinion is correct a child is more valuable than an animal. I said nothing about the parents total lack of responsibility. The animal was not murdered, the child was saved!!
THESE PARENTS SHOULD BE THROWN TO THE LIONS. PERIOD.
Really??? The child is certainly more important than the gorilla. Whether zoo or parent neglect that is not the issue. Saving a human life is. Hats off to quick response of zoo officials.
Human life is most important. People have devalued the lives of human beings and have no real sense of right and wrong. This was a 4 year old child who would have most likely been horribly mauled by this gorilla. Get a reality check people. All you animal rights activists, the story would be different if your kid was in danger. You wouldn’t want your kid mauled by a beast. The gorilla was an animal, although an awesome creature, he was not human!!! Accidents happen. The zoo is at fault for not having the enclosure safe and child proof enough on my opinion. Children are curious, fearless and small. They fit into small places and are fast on their feet. Parents are not perfect. Have some mech and compassion for the child and his parents.
EVERYONE involved is to blame for Harambe’s death except for Harambe himself!!! The kid should not have gone in… the parents should have been watching him closer and not allowed him to go in… and the zookeepers should have been able to read the animals actions better than they did. The Gorilla was not being aggressive. The humans are the ones who panicked. The Gorilla is the one who payed… with his life. Bless his soul.
HB, Screw droves of passionless questions. I did watch a video that showed a closer view than on this site. I think I would have tazed Harembe if I had 1,2,3 or 4 handy, as handy as my .308 Remington.
Shrieking onlookers aside, Mr Zoo did what he thought best, skin color not making any difference.
If you look closer at the video you’ll see Harembe was pretty gentle with the child, gorilla gentle that is. Gorillas are not carnivors and kill only as last resort and babies of any species are special. Ripped to shreds? Nah, but what’s done is done; I probably would have done as he.
The child was in danger, gorillas are irrational, the decision was tough and painful but very correct, irrespective of the negligence of the boy’s parents.
Totally agreed
The kid and the Parents has been blessed and lucky the poor Gorila was gentle with the little boy. But I am to said I thing is totally responsibility of the parents; the Zoo personnel has to save the child life, but this tragedy could be avoid if the boy would have the appropriate supervision, to go places with four child , one as little like this boy and another in arms is not wright, one is go to be safe , the other one not. I guess just to said accidents happen is not enough .
Thank you for allowing the comment to go through. It isn’t something I would have written eight years ago. Before Obama became President most white people had put the racist attitudes of their parents behind them. Blacks and whites were getting along much better than in the times of our parents and grandparents. Obama made his anti-white, anti-police attitudes well know almost from the beginning. Remember the Beer Summit? Remember his comments about Zimmerman immediately after the Trayvon Martin shooting? Remember his comments about the shooting of Michael Brown by police officer Darren Wilson? Obama has caused the anti-white attitude of blacks to grow like a cancer tumor on corn syrup. Remember all of the videos of the ‘knock-out game’? Did you ever hear Obama comment about those? And now we have Black Lives Matter idiots disrupting speeches and protesting in the streets about WHAT? White Americans have been fleeing the cities to the suburbs since the sixties, not because they didn’t enjoy the conveniences of living in a city, but because of black on white crime. We are safer in the suburbs. Now Obama wants to bring low-income (black) housing into the suburbs. He wants to bring us the crime that we have been fleeing for over fifty years. Am I a racist? Probably much more than I used to be. Eight years ago I would have answered no. However, I am no more a racist than Obama. If you want to discuss gene pools, you might want to comment about his genetic disaster. It took some guts for you to post my earlier comment. I don’t suppose you will post this comment, but at least you have now read my response.
Its extremely sad to have this great loss even though it was wild and not predictable, who has to give up its life for the stupid human, that many wildlife has been giving.Was there no other way than to just kill it, can not understand this, in this such a modern captivity with so much developed equipments and knowledge. And why the child was allowed to go there in the first place. Its such a shame to hear this in such a powerful and developed country being so powerless and has to take this unwanted step…
WTF has race got to do with this? I guess some sad examples of human beings go through life seeking opportunities to portray themselves as “victims”. As one of Obama’s jackasses once said never waste a good crisis. The silent majority may appear to be slow to catch on but I think they are figuring out this whole politically correct nonsense and they are catching on to Sharpton and Jackson and the other race pimps. Yes folks, it’s really about putting your self in an advantageous position to get more free goodies. This is one of many reasons so many people are seeking to elect Trump. We want to try reality for a change.
First of all no one has gotten more freebies than Caucasians in America. The greatest freebie in the history of the planet was free slave labor from the backs of millions of Africans kidnapped from Africa, so don’t get it twisted. America would NOT exist today if it were not for FREE slave labor. Calling black folk lazy is a subliminal reverse psychological tactic developed by the “Tricknologists” of this country to keep black folk programmed in their childish spending behaviors, because America benefits to the tune of 1.1 trillion annually from the childish spending habits of African Americans.
Secondly, I support Trump and I could give a damn about Sharpton and Jackson for they mean no good for black people. History proves that. I think Trump will be the best thing for black folk because he will force them to finally become un-complacent, unite, pool their resources and once and for all ‘do for themselves’. So I say #GO TRUMP! (SERIOUSLY)
Firstly gorillas don’t belong in zoos so any incidents like this are first and foremost down to humans. The attitude today is that nobody is made accountable for their own actions, what is wrong with the old way of putting young children on reins like we used to. This ensures they can’t get lost in crowded places, they can’t run into roads or create situations like this. How many times do you see people walking down busy high streets with young children and the parent is on the mobile phone, completely oblivious to the child. There have been cases like this before and the animal has tried to protect the child bearing in mind all the screaming going on it is more than likely that this animal was trying to do what he would have done had it been a young gorilla drag it to safety. This poor animal had a sad lonely life followed by a violent death.
Riding the horse of “slavery” for over 200 years? Really!? That has nothing to do with our current generations. I admit it has been a great horse and brought black folks many advantages but don’t you think it’s time to give it a rest and come into the 21st Century? I’m glad that you see that what the democrats are doing for the blacks is akin to the old plantation system. Only instead of cotton, the crop is votes. I don’t much give a damn for either party. Both parties put forth the stench of corruption and double dealing.
Well said, the question still remains if a four year old can get in an enclosure how safe is it really. In my opinion that is and was the problem in the first place. It appears that barriers are not just to keep the animals in but to keep humans out no matter how old. Fix this problem before it happens again.
Doesn’t change the fact that an endangered animal is dead. You just can’t pretend nothing happened, lady. It was an accident, but it was one that could have been prevented. Someone needs to take responsibility instead of everyone backing down with the belief that nothing can be done.
I don’t doubt that those zoo employees probably love their animals, BUT the zoo didn’t protect this gorilla from other people. The Cincinnati Zoo should at least be barred from housing endangered species until they know how to properly protect them. When a 3-year-old is able to breach the barrier to an animal’s habitat, then the barrier is pathetically weak.
With that said the World Wildlife Federation should drop the hammer on zoos like Cincinnati’s and make the Cincinnati Zoo an example that by use of federal agency guidelines would force them to spend hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of dollars on upgrades to increase animal protection and access to animal habitats. Then we would at least know that Cincinnati gave a crap. Until then, all talk and no action will fall on deaf ears.
🙁
Are you sure that you aren’t the woman that put the hot coffee between her legs and then proceeded to drive her car and when the coffee spilt and burned her she sued McDonalds, or maybe you were on the jury that found in her favor. It all comes down to taking responsibility for your actions. If you act stupidly you are responsible and no one else. In this case the mother did not act responsibly. She should have never taken 4 children to the zoo and tried to handle them by herself as they obviously were not well disciplined and did not do as they were told.
I know how you feel because I have been there and done that. I was not raised to be prejudiced but over the years I have changed my attitude a lot and more so the past ten to twenty years.
my strong opinion on the matter is that regardless about how fast your 4 year olds are,it is your responsibility to watch them hold their hand keep them distracted from dangerous places and objects, my biggest argument is THE CHILD WAS NOT IN IMMEDIATE DANGER! This story has made me research gorilla and their defense and attack mechanisms and a 4 year old would be as light as a feather to this amazing creature its main attack would be to grab the target throw them in the air and ponce on it punching its victim now in the video where the hell is any of these??? at one part of the video the gorilla actually holds the boy picks him up and pulls his shorts up and continues to pull him. put this image in your head IF THE GORILLA WAS ACTUALLY A PUPPY AND THIS PUPPY WAS PULLING YOUR 4 YEAR OLD AROUND your fist thought would be “that is so sweet his “PLAYING” with him but hey because the gorilla is close to extinction let us humans help with that.
I HATE WHAT HAPPENED!!
I did not attack the mother of the child. But the zoo should answer for allowing the situation to occur. They did not do formal risk assessments adequate enough when reviewing potential dangers and hazards to both guests and animals when constructing these habitats. If it was some teenage punk or some older person, then it’s another story, but a small, inexperienced-in-life 3-year-old is pathetic.
The zoo failed that gorilla. Now, it needs to take action, and not just investigate. Physical and very much visible evidence showing alteration to barriers and guards that will end potential and failures in its safety (for a TODDLER!) should be forced on that zoo by the WWF and OSHA.
Best way to take care of it then based on your rationale is to do away with all zoos, allow the endangered to be guarded on reserves, and to keep the public away from them.
Quit playing the race card!! Brown v Board of Education and desegregation already happened a long time ago. Quit trying to act like an MLK or Malcolm X posterboy, as if segregation was still a societal norm!
I didn’t watch the video, and thought the kid was white the whole time until you opened your trap screaming the race card!! Then, I investigated and realized the kid was black, only AFTER you spewed your drivel.
I was calling for the gorilla’s protection long before I knew the kid’s skin color, so please shut up, grow up, and quit acting as if the big, bad, white people are out to get the poor, defenseless black people.
If it were a white child, I’d feel the same. Leave it to someone called “Hoodboss” trying to back apparel, that druggies and gangsters in L.A. and Detroit would be proud of, to relentlessly play the race card as if he were on a pre-Civil War Southern plantation and segregation apparently never happened.
Get over yourself.
Kathy — do you have children?
If so, have you ever done all you thought was right in disciplining, protecting and watching your child? Are you honestly saying your child has never never left your sight and for a split second you didn’t see your child? If it had been your baby what would you have wanted those in charge to do to rescue your child?
Hid sight is a B****H. If you don’t have children – you really should not speak. There are many many parents that have thought they did or taught the right thing and was certain their children wouldn’t do certain things. But have found out later it didn’t take hold.
While the gorilla was dragging a human child around like he would have his — this child was not a gorilla child. Those commenting act like the gorilla could have been reasoned with not to cause harm – are you certain without a doubt the animal wouldn’t have killed the little one?? Which one of you as a worker there would have wanted to go in and retrieve the child from this “kind” animal?
I have trouble understanding the outrage – but it becomes clear when you realize most people commenting don’t have children and/or they believe themselves to be perfect and have all things under control — or one must consider them to be somewhat racist because the parents to be of black persuasion.
Really? How much is the worth of a human child’s life? Sorry, but animals are not humans too (PETA) that is why we call them animals
you are absolutely right Mom!!
Until you have been in the situation – or similar – people should not comment about the parents neglect
They should remember that with the same measure they judge — at some point – they are going to be judged by the same measure
Wonder how they will like it then?
Nobody knows what would have happened to the child, how the ape would react, or whether the child was already injured. Humanity 1, unpredictable primate, 0.
“Accidents happen,” so states that mother of the child who fell into the gorilla’s enclosure.
That is a pretty cavalier and flip statement! Accidents can especially happen
when people aren’t paying attention. The zoo says that the barriers around the
enclosure had never been breached in the 38 years of the zoo’s history. For a
4-year-old to get in must have taken more than a few seconds. What was Mom
doing during that time, even after people heard the child say he wanted to get
into the enclosure and its pond and Mom said “no” (accidents also
happen when children are allowed to disobey their parents). After the child was
discharged fro the hospital, Mom expressed gratitude to God for protecting her
son. Why didn’t God protect him by preventing him from falling into the
enclosure in the first place? That would have also protected Harambe from being
shot. Guess God wasn’t paying attention either. Mom also didn’t mention the
tragic result of the accident or apologize for any part she just might have
played. Sadly, the result is that a magificent endangered gorilla lost his
life. The child can go on having whatever accidents lie in his future, but Harambe
is gone from this earth forever.
I believe killing him was wrong,but the Zoo was probably afraid of a law suit. This has actually happened many times before,the gorillas have never killed or harmed anyone,,The gorilla could have killed him in seconds,but actually appeared to shield him,,the yelling people probably made him nervous..but I dont believe he would have killed the child, I think the handlers could have entered the enclosure and distract him,maybe with food or a toy,ETC. Gorillas are extremely intelligent ,even more so then chimps,and have a closer DNA. To see their intelligence google You Tube: Koko crying over death of Pet Cat..
Humans are an animal as well and we mistakenly think ourselves above that. We are not. We worry that an advanced alien encounter would result in hostilities while others will hope the aliens have values similar to ours else they may herd us into enclosures to be held as food, or experimented on. Or, put in enclosures as entertainment for aliens wanting to observe us in the people zoo…. I hope their values, as they are actually practiced, are better than ours.
If I had been there, if I was a daily acquaintance of the animal, with a stalk of bananas at the other end of the moat…. I would have tried to create a diversion, then had security officers ready to grab the child with guns ready. Any opening access to a wild animal should be totally secured. Sure we can say this now. I really feel for the inquisitive child, parents and the gorilla.
I’m sorry but you don’t need to be an expert to see that Gorilla was trying to protect the child; he dragged him away to get him away from screaming humans. Yes, he could get injured with the dragging, but clearly if that Gorilla wanted to kill him he could do it so much more quickly. At least try to sedate him and if he gets confused and tries to act aggressively towards the child, then shoot him; they clearly shot him multiple times. And the arrogance of people to think that animals life is so much more important than us in this planet or universe…yes, when it comes to dire situation, I will value mine more, but in this situation, it did not call for it. And that mother is barely even remorseful and said that “god” protected his child. Was it also God’s plan to have him go there in the first place? This mother is a brainwashed fool who should be made to volunteer in the zoo for the no. of years Harambe lived.
I know what im talking about, so dont try to say i dont.
That mother put her child on the wall so he could see.
Theres no way a 3ft kid could scale a 3ft wall on his own.
She is responsible for the whole thing. Father is a no-good
criminal. Having babies like theyre breeding ferals.
All she could do was yell “mommys here! Mommys here!”
Where was she when the kid really needed her?
Now a beautiful endangered animal is dead.
Who takes 4 kids to a zoo with no help? Stupid!
You took your eyes off your child for two minutes in a public place?
Two minutes is a really long time. You were wrong. Sounds like
you did that many times and never learned.
Worth more to who? His parents and family maybe but to the planet……
Humans have done everything to destroy the planet, drain resources,pollute and over-populate,none of these things can be attributed to the Gorilla & he is endangered because of man, so more valuable to whom?
They could have tried “non lethal” crowd control weapons like “bean bag rounds” or a high pressure water hose. The human population is growing like an infection here on Mother Earth and we are crowding out the other life forms (plant and animal)! This Gorilla may have thought that the boy was in danger and was trying to protect him. Other methods could be used, but it seems that law enforcement and security are trained to use “lethal force” first to prevent any lawsuits!
More valuable to God since animals do not have souls. If the Gorilla was more valuable then he would be in charge not humans.
Go kiss mother earth and keep letting your friends abort their babies as you have no concept of the value of human life.
Kathy, you don’t know what you’re talking about.
I dont???
How do you know what i know?
You dont.
Booooo…..you’re are not correct.
The Bible says
everything that has a breath has a soul
and all souls go to the Father who gave it.
Wow….you’re an ignorant person.
Very well said!! They are unfit parents and I do not understand why CPS is not being involved….
Thats what they did in England wasnt it?
I don’t know, cooler, more intelligent heads should have prevailed. But hindsight is always 50/50. Ha. Sad for that majestic animal.
It actually looked like Harambe, a female was treating the child “as her’s”. Further reporting reveals Harambe carried the 3-year-old safely up a ladder onto a small grassy area. That’s when zoo officials shot her.
But from another perspective. Chicago shootings reached 65 casualties over the Memorial Day weekend. Where’s Obama, Hillary, Feinstein and Schumer when this gigantic trauma happens ? 24-hour arrests need to be made in Chicago with beefed up
Patrols with bullet proof glass cruisers.
Give me the verse don’t just spout it.
The ignorant one here is the one who thinks an animal is more important than a human life. Read Genesis 1:26
“Only a person with contemptible, perverse values would, even for a
moment, question the decision made by the police and the zoo. There is
no real controversy here. It is very simple. And anyone who struggles
with it is disturbed on a deep, spiritual level,”
“Spout” the Bible? Wow…..
You’re not worth any more of my time.
You’re a sad sad person.
Now youre judging peoples “spiritual level”????
Putting youself in Gods place? Very dangerous.
You are too lazy to back up your words with facts. You are the sad person here! Back it up with the verse don’t think I will take your word for it.
Oh im too lazy? I work 7 days a week helping others.
I will look it up for you when i get a chance ok you
pathetic fool. What a troll.
Troll??? you are a pathetic liberal that can’t back up anything you say only using more excuses!!
Hey Helen, did you miss the part about there being three other children, one of which was an infant, under the supervision of those parents?
Those “neglectful parents had multiple children under their care. Accidents happen and ugly finger pointing will never stop that. The parents probably would have sued the zoo? Nice of you to presume. But maybe just stick to the facts.
When these parents “allow” the boy to do any such thing? If it were your child, I suspect you’d be singing a different tune
“Father is a no good criminal”. You make me sad. That had nothing to do with this and should have never been introduced into the conversation by media. It’s fine to mourn the animal, but don’t make this about the quality of people. It would have been sad if the child died as well, and because of the call that was made he wasn’t.
Shaking in disgust at all of you attacking the character of these people and their parenting skills. Bottom line, you wouldn’t be so quick to blame the parents if it happened to a child in your family.
I read that too……. which strengthens my comment I think. I am a School Bus Driver and I deal with all kinds of student problems, from ages 5 thru to 17, and all these problems all go back to THE PARENTS not preparing their children, ignoring their childrens needs, and not teahing their children that there are big consequences for bad behaviour etc, etc. . I have been doing this work for 35 years now, and I really feel sorry for the children. Parents MUST be responsible. And yes, I am also a parent. It’s tough, BUT, don’t have children if aren’t prepared for a tough run at times.
The “animal experts” that were interviewed pretty much agreed that if you shot the gorilla with a tranquilizer it would take time to take effect and the gorilla might have harmed the child once it felt pain. I would have liked to see them try something creative to distract the gorilla from the child so they would not have to kill it.
That maybe so but don’t you think that since we are living in such a dysfunctional society and parents let their children run amuck as was suggested by another response perhaps all zoo’s should take a closer look at the safety factor. In this case there was only a 3 foot wire fence separating the wild animal enclosure and the public. Hardly high enough to keep out a child or an unstable person from harming them selves and in this case the animal. I feel that a 10 to 15 foot fence would be harder to breach than a 3 foot one. That is where the problem lies and not so much how attentive the parents are. Are the parents or parent in this case responsible of course with out a doubt, but the zoo is as well and much more so because it provided an easy access.
You have missed the point here I think. The problem is not what the Gorilla did….. it is the fact that the parent DID NOT take her demanding child in hand BEFORE it ran amok , and went into the Gorilla pen. Nothing to do with retrieving the child…… the Parenting Problem was to not have taken the child in hand and PREVENTED all what happened.
Well said.
No I am not missing the point — I am just not an animal lover to the point of killing humans instead.
Yes we all would think that more could have been done by the parent to maintain her child – but since the child did get through – do we punish the child because of the mother’s so called – per your personal opinion – neglect.
Again, unless you have children and you are a perfect parent with NO issues that I would deem irresponsible – you should not be so quick to call for the safety of an ANIMAL over that of a HUMAN life. Period.
Wow!! Witness, Judge and Jury. And let’s not forget racist (per your remark) — as you I will assume you are guilty of that just by your comments.
Again, you didn’t answer the question? Do YOU have children or is this just your “arm” chair ideas as an on-looker?
And IF you are a parent – be careful — you could be next for critique for your actions or lack there of.
Pay back is a “B—H”. Be careful we will be reading about you next.
Really? You think you are as dumb as an animal? You believe yourself to be equal with an animal? Really? Which one?
Only humans were tossed out of Eden. The ONLY animal that has evil in it’s soul is the human.
Genesis
You, madam, are an insensitive bitch. How dare you deem your opinions more valuable than others posting here. Get on your broomstick and take a hike!
Kathy, this is just a function of your racism against Black people, and nothing else.
Oh wow you know the name of one book in the Bible !!
So you think an animal is better than a human LOL An animal has no concept of right or wrong and would just as soon kill and eat you. At least God gave humans the choice to be good or evil but you will be judged in the end, animals will not.
You are the one bringing in race. I never said anything about race.
In fact, when i read this story, it said nothing about the race of these
people. I dont care what color stupid is…stupid is as stupid does.
You dont even know what color i am. So keep playing your race
card.
We can blame the parents and rightfully so but the zoo is at blame more so because how does a child get in the Gorilla enclosure. Not hard with only a 3 foot wire fence separating the wild animal enclosure and the public. Hardly high enough to keep out a child or an unstable person for that matter from harming them selves and in this case the animal that was shot. There is a simple fix to this problem, make the bloody fences higher so that all are protected. Yes we all have our opinion and it serves no purpose in attacking each other on who did or didn`t do what.
Kathy, you and everybody else are against the mother and the child due to their race, and figure that it’s their fault that this gorilla died. But guess what, it’s not their fault-it’s nobody’s fault, all it is, is a tragic accident. This whole thing has now become about how the mother’s unfit to raise kids, and it would NEVER be said if she was a white woman. So bite me on that one, and that applies to everybody else here saying and feeling the same thing.
Yep! You are correct!
Why do YOU want to make this about race???? You are so wrong.
You are the only one even bringing race into this. Can you read?
I said when i read this news, it said NOTHING ABOUT RACE!
So you can “BITE” yourself. I dont care WHAT color you are, but
if youre stupid….YOU’RE STUPID.
What do you mean it has nothing to do with it?
It has a LOT to do wih it. Whenever i said
“wait till your father gets home”, i got the proper
reaction. Having an authority figure in a childs
life is worth it’s weight in gold. Having two is
even better.
Completely agree.
Oh yes i would and i probably would have been warning them well before, that
Something like this will happen someday if they dont get a grip on their kids!
I betcha NOT!
Nope you got that backwards.
Do white people riot and say White Lives Matter?
Come on man!
Now you sound just like your president and his racebating wife.
The article never said his race you MORON.
For real!
Thats what ive been saying.
They hate that justice is blind to color.
They think black people should get
a pass ‘because’ they’re black.
Hear! Hear!
Wow, your first paragraph and the second one are like from two different people.
First of all, slave labor was expensive, not free. Second of all they were sold to other
peoples by their ‘own’ people. Look to those regions today, they are STILL DOING IT.
Thirdly, every race has been subject to slavery, not just the black race. Its as old
as time. I dont go around crying because the Irish were treated worse than black slaves.
The harder you work, the luckier you get.
You and everybody else here berating the mother and child over this dead gorilla are the stupid ones, not me or anybody else with sense. And when did you and the other morons here become such experts on parenting, and also, how did you all become such lovers of primates like Harambe? I’ll bet dollars to pounds that none of you even cared for Harambe before today, but now you are that concerned? And concerned enough to be demonizing the mother and the child that could have almost lost his life?
Everyone has seen the video tho. And btw, your mother is a MORON for giving birth to you. Your mother should have swallowed.
Actually, they do worse. They create phony terrorist attacks to go to war to kill thousands of people including their own. Fake ass American made ISIS…and y’all believe dat shit just like bogus ass 9/11. If you believe that, I gotta bridge I wanna sell ya. They wage nuclear war and drop nuclear bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki…they’ve killed off millions of Native Americans, they enslaved and killed millions of African Americans… They knowingly give people infectious diseases in the name of experimentation (Google Tuskeegee Experiment), they’re femininizing the American male through poisonous food and water in the name of population control (http://m.democracynow.org/stories/14216 …I could go on, but it’s pointless because you obviously defend and appear to be part of the evil status quo that exists in this world. Btw Obama is NOT my president, he’s a pawn that was “selected” not elected to appease and diffuse black people. I don’t trust none of ’em. America ALWAYS think in terms of race and color and if you say otherwise your out of touch are part of the conspiracy.
what makes you so sure?
Every animal behavior expert interviewed said so and the risk to the boy was not a choice. The 2-5 minutes it would take to subdue the animal would have been enough to have him become violent and kill the child a risk they could not take. The made the only choice possible and second guessing them is foolish.
You are a POS.
Very mature…how old are you? 12?
Parent is not to be blamed. It’s the real culprit is the barriers! If you watch the clip and analyze. The child fell in, Gorilla rushed to save and protect him. It would appeared as if it was stroking his hand. The child began to cry and people shouting. The gorilla looked puzzled. Grabbed the boy’s hand and rushed to safety; A corner, scared!. It’s my guess that he would not have harmed the child, but quick decision had to be made. I have seen this movie before haven’t you? “KING-KONG” Played out in front of our very eyes! Well!, Well! Well! Hillary Eloise JC
look these are just comments on the matter, we are not a jury, This does not need to be a platform for people to be called names and be insulted as I believe NO ONE knows what the animal was really thinking or doing no animal expert either only God who created the animal so fact remains that the child is safe now and the animal has gone to a better place and won’t have any kids jumping into their homes and getting shot. now people stop insulting each other.
I agree with you that it’s a shame they had to kill the animal. I think most zoo’s are not a good thing and the animals should be in a wildlife preserve or in the wild. The thing that bothers me most is the hypocrisy of the people yelling the loudest about an animals life when they think it’s their right to kill an unborn child. That’s so sad !!!
The Zoo management should have taken effective measures to protect the animals from stupid and irresponsible people.
You are absolutely right. For example, do we need to sit on a ledge to look at crocs and have a child accidently or on purpose slip out of a parents arms to be come lunch for the animals. I would think that a 10 foot wire fence would safeguard from this happening. In this case there was only a 3 foot fence which most children can climb over and look at what the end results was. All zoos must take the responsibility for the safety of all concerned that includes not only humans but the animals as well.
Give your head a shake, it’s that sort of erroneous, contrived clap trap that has jihadist trying to cut our fr*ggin heads off… because their story is real and the other 4199 religions practised are phoney,well get this ..all 2 damn thousand are created in the human mind !start using your brain to understand reality rather using it to create a deluded,pseudo fantasy that relieves you of the responsibility to think for yourself…
You are one screwed up person if you think there is no higher power than you. Plus if you think an animal has more rights than a fetus let alone a child you need to shake your head. Do you hear it rattling, that those dead brain cells from all the drugs you have injested in your pitiful life.
Have you ever heard of the term “The dark night of the soul”? I guess not…it’s a period in the teachings of all clergymen, when they learn and realise that all religions are hoax. All priests,popes,ministers,bishops ,etc,etc are Atheist. They have to be in order to vigorously compete for their positions.Grow up and come into the new era of understanding,instead of waffling on in a past world of mysticism. Ghost stories and magic are purveyed against indoctrinated children.
There is nothing unknowable to the human mind, which means the mind has no limit to knowledge.The universe is almost certainly teaming with earth-like planets inhabited by human civilisations billions of years older than ours, (only controlled fools like you believe we are the only human race)civilisations that have developed biological immortality via nanotechnology, the reason they have achieved this is by using their brains to understand reality rather than using it to create reality based on erroneous assumption .We are the highest level of intelligence in existence. Existence has always existed because it’s impossible for something to come from nothing. Religion is a tool used to extract from,divide and control people and with you as an example, it’s done a bang up job..now go away and use your brain correctly instead of using it to CREATE fantasy stories about my personal lifestyle and habits…DELUDED IDIOT.
I repeat You are one screwed up human !! If you are so sure there are no other beings in this universe more intelligent than humans then that says a lot for your education. Get your money back from those screwed up institutes of higher learning that duped you. I will continue to learn more with my engineering degree and never believe that man knows all.
Just because you state what you believe to be fact doesn’t make it so. You are deluded if you believe your “dark night of the soul” fantasy infects all clergymen LMAO
Your parents brought you up under a cloud of lies and false assumptions and you still cannot grasp reality as an adult. GORILLAS ARE MORE WORTHY OF LIFE THAN YOU.You are nothing more than a drain on valuable resources and you support, hoax, murderous , homophobic, child abusing religion.Surely you dnt still believe what your priest did to you is normal?
Well said Kathy, he is a brainwashed moron with a tainted , controlled mind and trying to make someone so deeply indoctrinated by mystical notions is a complete waste of our time. Ignorance is bliss as they say and he is exactly that…ignorant.
You are an ignorant idiot since you think I or any human is less than an ape in value. What a moronic statement from an atheist. I do not or never have believed in the Catholic Church and the man made garbage they spew. I have respect for an agnostic but utter contempt for an ignorant atheist. Read this and open your utterly closed simple mind. http://creationrevolution.com/famed-scientist-says-hes-discovered-proof-of-gods-existence/
You are an ignorant idiot since you think I or any human is less than an
ape in value. What a moronic statement from an atheist. I do not or
never have believed in the Catholic Church and the man made garbage they
spew. I have respect for an agnostic but utter contempt for an ignorant
atheist. You need to open your utterly closed simple mind. Even Dr. Michio Kaku believes there is a God figure and I’m sure he is more intelligent than you.
Where’s the 1 Million signatures petition calling for the prosecution of the parents that allowed their 2yr old son the wade in the lagoon at Disney World and get killed by an alligator? Causing Disney officials to subsequently kill 3 alligators in order to find the one that actually did the killing. I’ll wait.
**crickets**
when a child dies, unless the father murdered him, it has nothing to do with it.
Please don’t vote in the November election.
We exploit and treat nature like shit – “there’s enough of it around so don’t worry a loss”. Just because we have become the top of the food chain over centuries it doesn’t mean that we should treat those below us like that. That goes for humans and animals alike. We exist to live together, else it would have never happened, biologically and logically.
Ever imagined the life from the eyes of an animal? How is it when someone points a gun at your head? Don’t you think that animals and humans share the same reactions here for a reason? Despair – Fear – Anger – Hysteria?
Harambe did not need to die. He was raised by humans. There were several ways to save both in that situation and we all know that, starting with a Staff member actually going in, after all they are supposed to be working with the animals or am I wrong?
But no, of course the narrow minded human trash has to grab the gun, because everything can be solved with killing, right?
Power rules everything.
The more I have, the more I can do without regrets.
The less I need to listen to my morality.
The world was not created like this, we changed it to our liking.
We created this prison, where only the strongest survive.
Harambe tried to be strong by protecting the weak.
Unfortunately humans can’t sense this common natural attitude anymore, since security has become nothing but an illusion to us, just like the believe in a better world.