A black mother doesn’t watch her kid and as a result, a gorilla is dead.<\/p>\n
NYT: Zoo\u2019s Killing of Gorilla Holding a Boy Prompts Outrage<\/a><\/p>\n It seemed like quick thinking when the Cincinnati Zoo shot to death a gorilla that was manhandling a small boy who had fallen into its enclosure on Saturday afternoon.<\/p>\n But soon supporters of animal rights were organizing a vigil outside the zoo in remembrance of the gorilla, named Harambe, a male weighing more than 420 pounds. Online petitions circulated blaming the mother of the child for negligence. By Monday the chorus of outrage had reached such an intense pitch that the zoo held a news conference to defend itself.<\/p>\n Speaking to reporters, Thane Maynard, the zoo\u2019s director, forcefully rejected the second-guessing of what he called \u201cMonday morning quarterbacks\u201d over the decision to kill the gorilla, one of an endangered species, instead of using a tranquilizer dart.<\/p>\n After the 4-year-old boy breached a barrier to the Gorilla World exhibit and fell into its moat, Harambe seemed to take an intense interest in the child.<\/p>\n \u201cThe child was being dragged around,\u201d Mr. Maynard said. \u201cHis head was banging on concrete. This was not a gentle thing. The child was at risk.\u201d<\/p>\n Mr. Maynard said a tranquilizer would have taken precious minutes to knock out the western lowland gorilla, while the impact of the dart might have startled him, posing an even graver danger.<\/p>\n Mr. Maynard said the animal was capable of crushing a coconut with his hands. The boy was lucky that Harambe had not done so to him, if only out of carelessness, he said, noting that the gorilla had become agitated and disoriented by screams from the crowd.<\/p>\n Outside the zoo on Monday, the gorilla\u2019s supporters held placards that read \u201cR.I.P. Harambe,\u201d \u201cBecause his life mattered\u201d and \u201cIn loving memory, Harambe.\u201d Inside, flowers were placed at a gorilla statue.<\/p>\n COMMENT:<\/p>\n * Actually, the child, and the (apparently unmarried) parents of the child are African Americans.<\/a><\/p>\n So this is a case of #blacklivesmatter trumping #gorillalives matter. However, I\u2019m with you, I don\u2019t want to see the headline someday \u201cLast Living Panda Slain After Tot Enters Enclosure.\u201d<\/p>\n I recognize the dignity of human life but if we don\u2019t extend it to the animal kingdom we are not doing it right. Moreover, the human race is nowhere near threatened. Many non-human species are.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" A black mother doesn’t watch her kid and as a result, a gorilla is dead. NYT: Zoo\u2019s Killing of Gorilla Holding a Boy Prompts Outrage It seemed like quick thinking when the Cincinnati Zoo shot to death a gorilla that … Continue reading