Shirlee Smith | The Zoo Isn’t A Kiddie Playground

You’ve already heard the story because everybody has: Four-year-old kid falls into gorilla enclosure at zoo; Harambe, the 17 year-old animal, drags kid through the moat (where kid landed after the tumble); Zoo officials shoot and kill the gorilla.

Everybody’s talking: Some say the boy’s parents were negligent; others point their finger at the conditions at the zoo saying it’s their fault for not having a secure enclosure; last, but certainly not least, are the protesters claiming the officials who called the shots that day should not have killed the 400-pound endangered primate.

It is unfortunate, but the zookeepers didn’t have a choice and while their actions are unpopular they did the right thing. Was Harambe trying to shield and protect the boy when he dragged him through the moat? Who thinks the officials had time enough to figure that out?

What if the animal had killed the kid? The zoo officials would be blamed for failing to protect the child.

Nothing to be said here against the argument that the gorilla enclosure was not secure. It wasn’t, since a 4-year-old was able to penetrate the safety parameter.

The parents? Come on now.

A family outing is a good thing but there is no excuse for parents not explaining the boundaries and the behaviors required specific to the occasion.

Don’t we teach the younguns not to talk in the movie theater? Most kids understand, even when they’re four years old, that they don’t get to eat popcorn while sitting in the church pew.

The zoo?

We visit the animals but they are dangerous. They are from the wild. They can hurt people. That is why we don’t touch them. We must stay together at all times. We hold hands.

The zoo for a four-year-old isn’t much different than crossing the traffic-filled street. Do we allow our children to run ahead of us just because the “walk” signal is flashing?

I sure hope not.

The parent, who understands their responsibility, has already talked about red light, green light and the possibility, when not following the rules, of being hit by a car.

These zoo-parents did not have their eyes or their hands where they should have been.

They were negligent parents no matter that the enclosure wasn’t secure and these negligent parents should be charged with child endangerment.

 

Shirlee Smith is a former Pasadena Star-News Opinion Columnist. She is a Los Angeles Press Club first place awardee and author of They’re Your Kids, Not Your Friends and the Spanish edition, “Son Tus Hijos, No Tus Amigos.” Smith can be reached by email at talkaboutparenting@gmail.com.