By now, everyone has heard about the tragic accident that happened at Cincinnati Zoo a couple weekends ago. On the off chance that someone hasn’t, here’s a brief recap: A mom lost track of her four-year-old kid while at the zoo, and he fell into the gorilla pit and disrupted the three gorillas in the enclosure. Zookeepers were able to call the female gorillas to them, but the third, a 17-year-old male named Harambe, ignored them. Within minutes, it was decided that the immediate threat of a disoriented silverback gorilla to the four-year-old was too serious to prolong, and the decision was made to kill the animal. Since then, the discourse has widened to incorporate everything from poor parenting, endangered animals, zoo misconduct, and now, race. Because always, race needs to be dragged into it. What the family’s racial identity has anything to do with the accident I fail to see, so instead, here are five things people could be doing to take a truly sad event and generate a productive response.
1. Teach people how to deal with panic.
I remember learning in middle school health that when there’s an emergency, the person who goes to someone’s aid has the responsibility of singling out one individual from the crowd, pointing directly at them and saying “you, go call 911.” We were told this was important because in a large gathering of people there is a diffusion of responsibility, with everyone believing that someone else would be the one to call 911, which would result in no call at all. Drawing on this lesson, I think the outcome might have been different if someone had thought to calm the crowd, or if zoo employees had acted like nurses in an emergency room where anyone not directly involved with saving the patient is forced to leave. Zoo employees were quoted as saying that Harambe was disorientated and agitated, and that this was likely exacerbated by the screams from the on looking crowd. Perhaps, if the crowd had been made to disperse or been pushed back so that the enclosure was as calm and quiet as possible, zookeepers would have been able to communicate better with Harambe and negotiate with him to get him to leave the child in favor of some other diversion.
2. Using the event as a teaching opportunity for parents.
Zoos totally give kids a false sense of security. They see pictures of the animals in books or watch T.V shows about them, and then get all excited to go see those same animals “in real life.” Accidents like these should serve as reminders to parents to really try to ensure that kids understand how dangerous wild animals are, and emphasize that in their natural habitats in the wild, grownups are in danger from them just like any other animal. Depending on the child’s age, share stories like Harambe’s with them to emphasize the importance of following the rules at zoos.
3. Take the time to learn.
Harambe was a western lowland gorilla, which is a critically endangered species. Part of what made Harambe’s death so tragic was the loss of a life critical to the re-development of the species’ population. Instead of pointing fingers and looking for someone to pin the blame on, adults should work to educate themselves and the kids in their lives about endangered animals, such as why they’re endangered, the efforts being made the save the species, and why some species are more at risk than others. While humans are the main source of population destruction around the planet, we’re also their only hope to survive. Raising the next generation with an appreciation for wildlife and an understanding of what they can do to help is a way to use Harambe’s death as a way to boost awareness for endangered species and teach kids how to react in a productive way when something negative happens. For example, kids could be encouraged to start a bake sale to fundraise for the zoo, or research an organization that discloses where and how donated money is allocated.
4. Zoos could develop a support program for moms.
This is an original by me, but what if zoos developed a mother’s-helper program of sorts? It could be a complimentary service and kids who were too young to actually work with the zoo animals, but wanted to work at the zoo and interact with people (without having to work at food vendors at ticket booths) could assist mothers with multiple children in areas of the zoo where the danger of accidents was highest. Not only that, but they could be a source of information for the kids—explaining why the rules are in place, fun facts about the animals, stuff that would engage the kids. This would both keep them safer and could also help them get more out of the experience than just seeing cool animals in man-made habitats, as well as teach them a healthy respect for wildlife.
Essentially, there are ways in which people could be using Harambe’s death to spur productive movements, but for some reason that’s not happening. The decision and outcome are unchangeable, so it seems to me the only logical thing to do is to take the event and use it as a learning and teaching moment to everyone the story touches.
