On this Memorial Day in the United States, I want to remember Harambe, a rare western lowland gorilla at the Cincinnati Zoo, who was shot and killed by zoo staff to save a 4-year old boy who had slipped into the gorilla enclosure. Zoo officials say tranquilizing the gorilla would have been too slow and a staggering 400-pound animal could have stumbled and/or fallen on the boy. Commotion from the crowd made the animal more agitated. However, it appeared the animal was trying to protect the child, sheltering him, dragging him to what he thought was safety.
This child said he wanted to go into the moat water, but despite his mother's insistence that he not go there, the boy went under a rail, through wires and over a moat wall to get into the water. This did not take 5 seconds to accomplish. Yes, a child can take such action in a split second, getting out of parental supervision, but this did not happen instantaneously. This took some time, even for a tiny boy, to do. Once in the water, the boy did not appear overly scared of the animal, until he got dragged by his foot through the water. Even then, the gorilla appeared to take a protective stance for the boy, helping him to his feet, pulling up his pants. But the screaming crowd scared the beast and he dragged the boy off through the water again to a place that he felt more secure. At that point, the decision to kill the animal was made.
Just sayin...
- 6
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