interesting
 

in that case as per the article, the mother stood the child up on the top of the rail so he could see better and he pulled away from her grasp and fell in. But the zoo settled. Who stands a 2 year old child on top of a railing??? the railing is there for a reason. just as the fence is there for a reason. the zoos assume reasonable people who take responsibility will be there--
of course the gorilla had to be put down but it's just a shame.

And who puts a railing between people and killer animals that is low enough to even stand someone on? I can think of a number of other things that could happen to put someone over that railing, not just a mother holding a child too high.

It was an accident, not an on purpose. The person who decided to have the outcome where the child survived is to be applauded. Not an easy thing to do.

I hate what happened. I have read so many stories about the great apes, always loved anything about Jane Goodall and as I have said before, I think that our animal companions become more important to our lives as we age and we have the time and patience to interact with them more.

However, if we must choose between the safety of a human child and a much loved Gorilla, our instinct and common sense tells us there is no choice.

Someone said that for 38 years no terrible thing like this has happened at the Cincinnati Zoo. There are those against such displays and they have their views. I am glad that I have been able to see many animals up close as a child and adult that otherwise I would have missed.

I have no problem with people loving their animals like children, in fact it is a beautiful quality and good for lonely people everywhere, but they aren't human children when the choice must be made.

When I looked into Harambe's face and read the title that he had been shot, I was very sad. Some people must always look to cast blame. Some things, awful things, are bound to happen. Who wouldn't have chosen this rather than waiting for a tranquilizer dart and it's unpredictable outcome if it were your beloved grandchild? Husband? wife? Mother?

I have just read that the father has a criminal past including drug trafficking for which he was imprisoned in 2006. The parents need to be investigated. They could possibly be found both criminally and civilly liable.

the mother had to lift the child up to place him on top of the 4ft railing. so a two year old child is now standing on top of a 4ft railing...but it's like anything...things are built thinking they will provide adequate protection because millions of people have come to the zoo without problems, but then the person who lacks common sense changes that and so now the bar has to be raised. google the picture of the railing and imagine putting your 2 year old on top of it....

"Racism has found its way into the Cincinnati Zoo saga"
KING: Racism has found its way into the Cincinnati Zoo saga - NY Daily News

From what I have read the father's criminal history includes burglary, firearms offenses, drug trafficking, criminal trespass, disorderly conduct and kidnaping. He obviously is not a model citizen!

Like I said, it doesn't have to just be a mother being stupid of losing control of a child. A four-foot railing (Pgh zoo) could be easily circumvented by a bunch of tumbling middle schoolers or teenagers. It just doesn't make sense to have something that hazardous breachable by any method, whether by accident, stupidity, or on purpose. Stuff happens.

What the heck does that have to do with it?

That seems irrelevant to the issue.

It relates to parental character or lack thereof, how the child is being raised, supervised (or not), the role model the father is providing and so on. After repeatedly badgering his parents to "swim with the gorillas" the child was sufficiently unattended to do what he did with a terrible result for all involved.

The only evidence of racism I noted was that before it was known the child was black the BLM hate group and others were accusing the zoo of "white privilege" for shooting a black gorilla to save a white child. Some of their groundless vicious tweets are posted in this. Liberals Scream Racism for Gorilla Being Shot Over "White Kid", Then This Picture Surfaces...

Bingo. Good people here with different points of view. I tend to side with not considering the dads past. He had his family at a zoo not the neighborhood bar. It was an accident with the child. What would be said if the animal killed the child? What they did once the accident happened was the only way to proceed.