Opinions

Cincinnati Zoo v. Harambe

When I first read about Harambe the gorilla being killed at the Cincinnati Zoo, I was fairly upset at the fact that the 17-year-old western-lowland silverback gorilla was shot by zoo officials in order to save a 3-year-old boy who had fallen into the exhibit.

“Why couldn’t they tranquilize the gorilla instead of shooting it dead?” I thought. After all, silverback gorillas are a critically endangered species, with the World Wildlife Fund reporting that their numbers have dramatically reduced by 60 percent over the past 25 years.

However, after analyzing the incident closely, I’ve realized that putting Harambe down was unfortunately the most sensible choice in order to save the young boy’s life.

It’s nice to think that all gorillas are heroes like Mighty Joe Young or Tarzan’s adoptive family, but they’re not. They’re wild animals and according to the Cincinnati Zoo director, Thane Maynard, the child’s life was in serious danger.

“People who question that don’t understand you can’t take a risk with a silverback gorilla – this is a dangerous animal,” Maynard, said. “Looking back, we’d make the same decision. The child is safe.”

Footage shot by a witness shows the 450-pound primate dragging the child through the enclosure’s moat as a crowd of observers clamor in shock.

Gorillas are identified as some of the deadliest mammals alongside lions, bears and tigers meaning not even zookeepers enter the exhibit with them. Zookeepers and these mammals are always divided by some sort of protective barrier.

Therefore, a child falling into this exhibit could have been a fatal ordeal.

But according to supporters of the #justiceforharambe hashtag currently trending on social networks, the boy was not in any grave danger at all. Many users claiming that the child was actually being protected by the gorilla – which, although optimistic, is a very unrealistic way of approaching the situation.

A social media post which attained a few thousand likes on Instagram, read: “I am sorry that ignorant humans deemed your life to be inferior to that of a human’s. I am sorry that humans assume you were going to hurt the child when in reality you were protecting it. I am sorry that @cincinnatizoo murdered you because of the mistake made by one of their paying customers.”

It’s unfortunate that Harambe had to be killed, and although it is necessary to talk about how the situation could have been prevented, it’s important to accept the fact that a boy’s life was in imminent danger.

Zoo officials handled the situation in a way that would save the child from a wild animal’s grip.

A plethora of memes are, of course, circulating social media either belittling the zoo officials, the child’s mother or the child himself.

One popular meme being found on Facebook and Twitter, for example, features a picture of Harambe and bold words that read: “Not sure why they killed me. I was doing a better job of watching that lady’s kid than she was.”

I can see why certain people believe the boy was being protected by Harambe. Footage shows Harambe standing over the child in what seems like a protective stance – there’s even a moment where the gorilla stands the boy up, a moment resembling a nurturing affair between the two.

All this before Harambe drags the boy around the moat strenuously.

But even if the gorilla was in fact “protecting” the child, Harambe most likely had no intention of freeing the boy, according to eyewitness who spoke to CNN, Kimberley Ann Perkins O’Connor.

“[Harambe] pulled the boy back in, tucked him underneath and really wasn’t going to let him get away,” O’Connor said.

 Harambe had no plans of letting the child go. The gorilla most likely would have ended up seriously hurting, or killing the child, not because of malicious intent, but because of the gorilla’s size and strength.

Furthermore, another eyewitness who spoke to Cincinnati local news affiliate WCPO, Bruce Davis, claims he witnessed the gorilla throw the child 10 feet in the air, and saw the child land on his back – something not caught on tape.

So, why not put the gorilla to sleep with a tranquilizer instead of killing him?

Both Maynard and animal expert Jeff Corwin agree that a tranquilizer may have taken too long to take effect and might have agitated Harambe, which would’ve worsened the situation.

“In some situations, depending on what the medication is, it can take upward to 10 to 15 minutes,” Corwin said. “It may take multiple shots.”

It’s discomforting to know that an endangered gorilla is now dead because of a mother’s lack of attentiveness, however; the 3-year-old child is alive and well, recovering in a hospital.

Zoo officials made a tough choice in order to save a life.

All I have left to say is – Parents, keep your kids on a leash if you have to.

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