Look, Cincinatti Zoo, we need to talk.
Create a free account to read this article
or signup to continue reading
We all know you’re not to blame for Harambe’s death. What happened that fateful May day was a tragedy, absolutely. No-one should ever have to make the decision between a defenceless boy and a defenceless gorilla.
But what is now happening is out of your hands. The internet has clambered aboard whatever discussions were happening around the shooting of Harambe the Gorilla – serious, engaging discussions about animal cruelty and the ethics of keeping animals in captivity – and infected it with the same thing the internet infects everything with: the collective obsession with memes.
Harambe has gone to Monkey Heaven, but he lives on, in the constant exhibition of weirdness that appears on our Facebook and Instagram feeds.
His face reminds us always of the futility of life, even when transposed into a scene from The Simpsons.
We’ve let go, Cincinatti. It’s time you did too.
