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Harambe

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For the Kenyan tradition, seeHarambee.
For other uses, seeHarambe (disambiguation).

Harambe
Still from a video showing Harambe holding the 3-year-old boy
SpeciesWestern gorilla
SexMale
Born(1999-05-27)May 27, 1999
Gladys Porter Zoo,Brownsville, Texas, U.S.
DiedMay 28, 2016(2016-05-28)(aged 17)
Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden,Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S.
Cause of deathGunshot wound[1][2]
Known forCircumstances of death
Residence
  • Gladys Porter Zoo (1999–2014)
  • Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden (2014–2016)
Weight440 lb (200 kg)
Named afterRita Marleysong

Harambe(/həˈrɑːmbeɪ/hə-RAHM-bay;May 27, 1999 – May 28, 2016) was awestern lowland gorillawho lived at theCincinnati Zoo.On May 28, 2016, a three-year-old boy visiting the zoo climbed under a fence into an outdoor gorilla enclosure where he was violently grabbed and dragged by Harambe.[3]Fearing for the boy's life, a zoo worker shot and killed Harambe. The incident was recorded on video and received broad international coverage and commentary, including controversy over the choice to use lethal force. A number ofprimatologistsandconservationistswrote later that the zoo had no other choice under the circumstances, and that it highlighted the danger of zoo animals near humans and the need for better standards of care.

Harambe became the subject ofinternet memes,a statue,songs, and other tributes and recognitions.

History

Early life and upbringing

Harambe was born at theGladys Porter ZooinBrownsville, Texas,on May 27, 1999. He was named by Dan Van Coppenolle, a local area counselor who won a naming contest sponsored by the zoo.[4]He came up with the name after listening to the 1988 song "Harambe (Working Together for Freedom)" byRita Marley,widow ofBob Marley.[5]Harambeeis aSwahiliterm forcommunal labor.[5]

On January 6, 2002, when Harambe was two years old, his mother Kayla, his 11-month-old brother Makoko, and his two-year-old half-sister Uzuri died ofchlorine gas poisoningafter chlorine tablets left too close to a space heater released gas into the gorilla enclosure. Harambe was also possibly injured in the accident.[6]

On September 18, 2014, Harambe was transferred to theCincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden,to learn adult gorilla behavior and join a new social group.[7][8]

Death

On May 28, 2016, a 3-year-old boy visiting the Cincinnati Zoo fell into the moat at the Gorilla World habitat.[9][10]

Witnesses said they heard the child say he wanted to go into the gorilla enclosure.[11]The boy then climbed a 3-foot-tall (0.9 m) fence, crawled through 4 feet (1.2 m) of bushes, and then fell 15 feet (4.6 m) into a moat of shallow water. Zoo officials immediately signaled for the three gorillas in the habitat to return inside, and two females did so. However, the third gorilla, the inquisitive 440-pound (200 kg) malesilverback,Harambe, climbed down into the moat to investigate the child splashing in the water.[10]

Over the next 10 minutes, Harambe became increasingly "agitated and disoriented" by the screams of onlookers.[12][13]He carried the child through the water, occasionally propping him up when he sat, or pushing him down when he stood.[12]Harambe exhibited "strutting" behavior—walking around with legs and arms stiffly extended to appear bigger—a bluffing move, though one with inherent danger should he throw or drag the boy around too roughly.[13]Harambe then carried the boy up a ladder out of the moat onto dry land. Afraid for the boy's welfare, zoo officials made the decision to kill Harambe, doing so with a single rifle shot.[3][6]Cincinnati firefighters said the boy was between Harambe's legs when the shot was fired.[10]

Harambe was killed one day after his 17th birthday.[12]The boy was given a trauma assessment and transported toCincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center;his injuries were non-life-threatening.[1]

Reactions

Memorial for Harambe at the Cincinnati Zoo, June 12, 2016

The incident was recorded in a dramatic video by an anonymous bystander and uploaded to YouTube, where it wentviral,sparking global publicity and controversy.[14][15]Some observers said that it was unclear whether Harambe was likely to harm the child.[16][17]Others called for the boy's parents or the zoo to be held accountable for the gorilla's death.[18]Zoo directorThane Maynardstated, "The child was being dragged around... His head was banging on concrete. This was not a gentle thing. The child was at risk."[19][20][21]

Police investigated possible criminal charges against the parents, while the parents defended the zoo's actions.[22][23]The boy's mother also became the target ofonline shaming.[24]On June 6, 2016, Ohio prosecutorJoe Deterssaid that the mother would not face any charges of wrongdoing.[9]The zoo was investigated by theAssociation of Zoos and Aquariums(AZA), which sets the standards for zoos, and theUSDA.[25]

Severalvigilstook place to honor Harambe's death. A candlelight vigil was held atHyde Park,London.[26]Animal rights activist Anthony Seta spoke at a vigil at Cincinnati Zoo, saying: "I'm not here to decide what was right and what was wrong; the fact is that a gorilla who just celebrated his birthday has been killed."[27]

The shooting was criticized by celebrities includingRicky Gervais,Brian May,andPiers Morgan.[28]Donald Trumpdefended the actions of the zoo during his2016 presidential campaign,stating the zoo employees "probably had no choice",[29]although he said "it was almost like a mother holding a baby".[22]

The incident sparked debate among biologists and primatologists on whether gorillas and other primates should be held in captivity at all.[13]PrimatologistJane Goodallsaid that according to the video it seemed Harambe was trying to protect the child.[30]She gave a longer explanation in an interview with the president of theInternational Fund for Animal Welfare,concluding that the zoo had no choice but to kill Harambe.[31]She wrote, "It was awful for the child, the parents, Harambe, the zoo, the keepers and the public. But when people come into contact with wild animals, life and death decisions sometimes have to be made."[25]Goodall said "we will never be able to be 100% sure that people and wildlife won't be injured when they are in such close proximity", and she believed that zoos "with the highest standards of care" could play an important role in the animals' well being.[25]

ZookeeperJack Hannastrongly defended the zoo's actions, noting that atranquilizer dartmight have taken five or ten minutes to take effect and would have further aggravated Harambe.[32]PrimatologistFrans de Waalsaid he saw few options for the zoo: "A gorilla is so immensely strong that even with the best of intentions—and we are not sure that Harambe had those—the child's death was a probable outcome."[33]Ian Redmondof the Ape Alliance said there were other options that were not tried, such as showing force to bluster the gorilla to back down, or if someone known and trusted by Harambe had tried to calm him.[34]

Cultural impact

Memes

Following the killing, Harambe became the subject of multiple viralmemes.[35]Voxwrote in November that Harambe has an "undeniable status as 2016's meme of the year."[36]Peoplemagazine wrote that "Harambe continues to live on in the collective mind of the internet, entering into a rarefied state of venerated meme status."[37]One of the most widespread memes was noted byThe Washington PostandNew Yorkmagazine who observed a proliferation of over-the-top and fake tributes to Harambe. "The idea is, the more intense and more sincere-seeming the expression of mourning is, the funnier the joke."[35][38]For example, the "Dicks out for Harambe" meme can be seen as a fake tribute to an incident that would normally engender sincere mourning.[39][40][41]Aja Romano ofVoxwrote that "If you were a progressive, the Harambe meme gave you a chance to mock what you viewed as the hypocritical haranguing of the mainstream while avoiding real issues of social justice; and if you were a conservative, the Harambe meme gave you a chance to mock liberal hysteria."[38][42]One meme is a play on conspiracy theories, such as "Bushdid Harambe ", a reference to9/11 conspiracy theories.[43]In Australia, people joked about supporting Harambe's corpse as awrite-in candidateon the ballot for thefederal election.[44]Public Policy Pollingincluded Harambe in their polling for theU.S. presidential election.Harambe had 5% support in late July 2016 (ahead of Green Party nomineeJill Stein) and 2% in August 2016 (tied with Stein).[45][46]

Cincinnati Zoo directorThane Maynardreacted negatively: "We are not amused by the memes, petitions and signs about Harambe. Our zoo family is still healing, and the constant mention of Harambe makes moving forward more difficult for us. We are honoring Harambe by redoubling our gorilla conservation efforts and encouraging others to join us."[47]In late August, the zoo deleted its Twitter account after being targeted daily bytrollsmentioning Harambe.[48]The zoo resumed its account two months later.[49][50]

Comedic culture

As noted by Chris Rosales, "While the gorilla's death is tragic, the culture that has spawned around it is quite comedic."[51]

A self-described underground culture collective known asOtaku Gangreleased a computer parodyfighting gameknown asHarambe vs. Capcom,with Harambe being able to fight characters fromCapcom'sStreet Fighterfranchise.[52][53][54]

American rappersYoung ThugandDumbfoundeadeach released songs entitled "Harambe". The former did so on his 2016 albumJeffery,each track of which is named after one of his "idols", although the lyrics do not reference the gorilla;[55][56]the latter likens the fate of the ape togang violenceandpolice brutality.[57]CanadiandubstepproducerExcisionincluded a song titled "Harambe" on his 2016 albumVirus.[58]

On June 16, 2017, satire news siteThe Onionfeatured a parody article of professional wrestlerBig Showbeing killed byWWEafter a seven-year-old boy wandered into hisfight cage.[59]On March 30, 2019,Elon Muskreleased a two-minute rap song titled "RIP Harambe" onto hisSoundCloud.[60]The track was performed byYung Jake,written by him andCaroline Polachek.[61][62]Rolling Stonemagazine called the track "a bouncy tribute to Harambe".[60]

On October 18, 2021, the 7-foot-tall (2.1 m) bronze statueHarambewas placed inBowling Green Parkin New York City, facing theCharging Bullstatue, to promote Sapien.Network, who aim to put the needs of humans first. The statue of Harambe facing the bull, whose feet were surrounded by 10,000 bananas, was a statement about wealth disparity.[63]

In October 2023, a new pedestrian bridge inMauldin, South Carolina,was listed as "Harambe Memorial Bridge" onGoogle Mapsbefore the bridge had been officially named.[51]The city was petitioned to keep the proposed name, but in February 2024 it was officially named the Mauldin Gateway Bridge.[64]

Later developments

In September 2017, the zoo added Mshindi, a 29-year-old male western lowland gorilla transferred from theLouisville Zoo.He joined females Chewie, 21, and Mara, 22, who were present on the day of the killing. At the same time, the zoo created a new indoor habitat where the public can view the gorillas year-round from behind safety glass.[65][66]

On the 2023 World Gorilla Day (September 24),[67]the feature-length documentaryHarambewas released. The film is critical of Harambe's killing. It shows new photographs and video footage from the day, and claims new evidence that Harambe was trying to return the boy to his parents.[68][69]

See also

References

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  2. ^"Cincinnati gorilla shooting: Police to investigate parents".BBC News.June 1, 2016.RetrievedMay 30,2021.
  3. ^abMcPhate, Mike (May 29, 2016)."Gorilla Killed After Child Enters Enclosure at Cincinnati Zoo".The New York Times.RetrievedMay 29,2021.
  4. ^Bigfoot Journeys (January 27, 2014)."Announcing the name of a baby lowland gorilla, 'Harambe'".KGBT-TV.Archivedfrom the original on December 18, 2021 – via YouTube.
  5. ^abVan Coppenolle, Dan (June 1, 2016)."I named Harambe. What his death means to me".CNN.RetrievedApril 23,2018.
  6. ^abO'Neill, Kara (June 1, 2016)."Shot gorilla's Harambe's mother and brother were GASSED TO DEATH in chlorine leak at zoo".The Daily Mirror.RetrievedJune 1,2024.
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  9. ^abPark, Madison; Yan, Holly (June 6, 2016)."Gorilla killing: 3-year-old boy's mother won't be charged".CNN.RetrievedMarch 11,2024.
  10. ^abcKnight, Cameron (June 1, 2016)."How boy got into gorilla enclosure".USA Today.Cincinnati.RetrievedJune 20,2016.a 3-year-old boy dropped into the Gorilla World exhibit
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  51. ^abRosales, Chris (October 14, 2023)."City Stuck With Harambe Memorial Bridge After Rogue Google Maps Edit".The Drive.RetrievedNovember 1,2023.
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  55. ^Strauss, Matthew (August 26, 2016)."Young Thug's New No, My Name Is JEFFERY Mixtape Has Songs for Harambe and Rihanna, and an Incredible Cover: Listen".Pitchfork Media.RetrievedAugust 30,2016.
  56. ^Tiffany, Kaitlyn (August 26, 2016)."Young Thug writes a song for Harambe, forgets Harambe".The Verge.RetrievedAugust 30,2016.
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  60. ^abKreps, Daniel (March 31, 2019)."Hear Elon Musk's Surprise Rap Song 'RIP Harambe'".Rolling Stone.RetrievedMarch 31,2019.
  61. ^Arcand, Rob (March 31, 2019)."Elon Musk Drops Surprise Rap Single 'RIP Harambe'".Spin.RetrievedApril 1,2019.
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  63. ^Lozano, Gabriella (October 10, 2021)."7-Foot Harambe Statue Stares Down Wall Street's Charging Bull, Which Is Now Covered in Bananas".NBC New York.RetrievedOctober 10,2021.
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  68. ^Moorwood, Victoria (September 18, 2023)."New 'Harambe' doc to have 'rare' photos, videos of Cincinnati gorilla".Cincinnati Enquirer.RetrievedDecember 25,2023.
  69. ^"Harambe Movie Documentary Home Page".harambemovie.RetrievedDecember 25,2023.
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