The heartbreaking death of Harambe, a 17-year-old gorilla at the Cincinnati Zoo, sparked a global debate about zoo safety and how we treat wild animals in captivity. On May 28, 2016, a young boy fell into Harambe’s enclosure, prompting zookeepers to fatally shoot the gorilla to protect the child.
Experts have since questioned whether Harambe’s behavior—seen by some as protective rather than threatening—was misunderstood. The incident raised tough questions about enclosure design, emergency protocols, and whether non-lethal options like tranquilizers could have been used instead. Harambe’s death continues to fuel conversations about the balance between human safety and animal welfare.
