LAST MAY, THE CINCINNATI ZOO HAD TO SHOOT AND KILL A GORILLA
NAMED HARAMBE AFTER A CHILD FELL INTO THE GORILLA PEN, AND MANY
FELT THAT THE GORILLA WAS POSING A THREAT TO THE CHILD.
FAST-FORWARD TWO MONTHS LATER, AND ON THE INTERNET PEOPLE ARE
CREATING MEMES, WHICH THE CINCINNATI ZOO IS NOT TOO
HAPPY ABOUT.
IF YOU CAME ACROSS THESE MEMES AND DID NOT FIND THEM OFFENSIVE,
CONSIDER THE FACT THAT THERE ARE NOW EVENTS ON FACEBOOK
ENCOURAGING PEOPLE TO JUMP OFF OF BRIDGES IN HONOR OF HARAMBE.
THESE EVENTS ARE POSTED AND CREATIVE ñ AND CREATED AND
MEANT TO BE A JOKE, BUT SOME ARE NOT TOO HAPPY ABOUT IT.
HERE ARE SOME EXAMPLES.
JUMP OFF THE HARBOR BRIDGE FOR HARAMBE.
JUMP OFF TELSTRA TOWER FOR HARAMBE.
WE DON'T ENCOURAGE SUICIDE, THREATS LETTING PEOPLE KNOW
IT'S A JOKE.
THEY HAD TO ADD THAT LATER BECAUSE THEY WERE STARTING
TO WORRY PEOPLE ARE TAKING IT SERIOUSLY.
I'M GLAD AT LEAST THEY WERE WORRIED ABOUT IT.
THERE WERE PEOPLE TWEETING ABOUT IT.
"WE WERE JUST INVITED TO MASS SUICIDE DONE ñ BRIDGE JUMP FOR
HARAMBE, SHOULD I RSVP FOR ANYONE ELSE?"
LATER ON, THE CREATORS OF THESE PAGES POSTED A MESSAGE SAYING,
THIS IS A JOKE, PLEASE DON'T TAKE THIS SERIOUSLY, THIS IS
CRAZY WE DON'T WANT ANYONE TO TAKE THEIR OWN LIVES AS A RESULT
OF WHAT HAPPENED TO HARAMBE.
BUT WAS EQUALLY DISTURBING TO ME IS THE NUMBER OF RACIST
MEMES THAT EMERGED AS A RESULT OF THIS GORILLA GETTING
TRAGICALLY SHOT AND KILLED AT THE CINCINNATI ZOO.
THESE ARE THE MEMES THAT EVENTUALLY CAN ñ CONVINCED THE
CINCINNATI ZOO TO DELETE THEIR TWITTER AND FACEBOOK PAGE.
I ALSO WANT TO NOTE THAT THERE WERE SOME LIGHTHEARTED MEMES AS
WELL, BUT THERE WERE PLENTY OF THESE MEMES.
ANOTHER UNARMED AFRICAN-AMERICAN SHOT DEAD.
THEY SHOT MY HUSBAND.
OK THAT'S A REAL PERSON, THAT'S NICE OF THEM TO DO THAT.
WHAT Y'ALL THINK WOULD HAVE HAPPENED TO THIS GORILLA?
REST
IN PEACE HARAMBE.
REMEMBER THAT KID THAT JUMPED INTO THE GORILLA TANK?
THIS IS
HIM, FEEL OLD YET?
HA HA HA, REALLY FUNNY.
AND HERE'S ANOTHER ONE, #ALLGORILLALIVESMATTER.
BUZZFEED EXPLAINS THAT 4CHAN STARTED AT LEAST THE BRIDGE JUMP
THING.
I DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT THE RACIST STUFF AT THAT POINT, BUT I
SAID LET'S LOOK INTO IT BECAUSE I WOULDN'T BE SURPRISED IF
PEOPLE TOOK US IN A RACIST DIRECTION.
OF COURSE THEY DID.
LOOK YOU GUYS, I KNOW THAT SOME PEOPLE THINK THAT RACISM IS
REALLY FUNNY, PROBABLY BECAUSE THEY NEVER SUFFERED IT.
THEY NEVER GOT CHARGED SO MUCH MORE MONEY FOR FINANCING,
WHETHER IT WAS FINANCING A CAR OR A HOUSE, AND EVEN OLD ñ EVEN
THOUGH THEY WERE POOR THEY HAD TO PAY AN EXTRA PENALTY.
THEY NEVER DEALT WITH ACTUALLY THINK IT'S HILARIOUS.
FAMILY MEMBERS NEVER GOT SHOT, SO IT'S REALLY FUNNY.
I CAN GO ON AND ON.
OK, AND I KNOW WHY THEY DID THE BRIDGE JUMPING THING, IT'S NOT
LIKE THE JOKE WAS LOST ON US.
YOU ARE SAYING, PEOPLE ARE OVERLY EMOTIONAL ABOUT
HARAMBE, SO WHEN WE ALL COME DOWN, AND WE'RE GOING TO TEASE
YOU ABOUT MASS SUICIDE BECAUSE THIS ISSUE IS SO NOT IMPORTANT.
I GET IT.
WE COVERED THE HARAMBE STORY, AND A LOT OF PEOPLE WERE REALLY
UPSET ABOUT IT, AND I SAID I WISH THEY HADN'T HAVE SHOT THE
GORILLA BUT IT WAS MY KID I WOULD'VE ASKED THEM TO TAKE A
SHOT.
I DID MOST PEOPLE WITH KIDS WOULD SAY THAT.
BUT AT THE SAME TIME, PEOPLE GOT ON ME FOR THAT, ETC.
BUT WHAT WE'RE ASKING YOU ON THIS SHOW, SOMETIMES WITH
SUCCESS, OFTEN TIMES WITH LESS ñ WITHOUT SUCCESS, IS TO ñ IS FOR
PEOPLE TO CALM DOWN AND RESPECT EACH OTHER A LITTLE BIT.
I KNOW SOMETIMES IT FEELS LIKE WE ARE FIGHTING AGAINST THE
WINDMILLS HERE, AND PEOPLE ONLINE GET A BIG KICK OUT OF
MAKING FUN OF OTHER PEOPLE AND DEMEANING THEM, AND THINK
THEY ARE MAKING JOKES THAT ARE SO CLEVER.
I'M THE FIRST ONE TO THINK OF A RACIST MEME, I'M SO CLEVER!
I KNOW THEY DON'T MEAN IT ALL THE TIME, AND SOME OF THESE
GUYS AREN'T EVEN RACIST, THEY JUST THINK RACISM IS HILARIOUS
ñ WHICH, BY THE WAY IS ANOTHER FORM OF RACISM.
I'LL MAKE FUN OF ALL THE STUFF THAT IS REALLY CAUSING GIANT
PROBLEMS IN YOUR LIFE, OR MIGHT EVEN CAUSE ñ
MIGHT EVEN COST YOU OR SOMEONE IN YOUR FAMILY'S LIFE, BUT
I DON'T CARE ABOUT AT ALL, I'LL MAKE FUN OF YOU FOR THAT.
I DON'T KNOW THAT'S RACISM OR YOU ARE JUST BEING A DICK -- AND
I KNOW SOME OF THE YOUNGER GUYS, THEY THINK BEING A DICK IS SO
FUNNY.
I'M THE FUNNIEST PERSON BECAUSE I'M SUCH AN ASSHOLE!
AND MAYBE IT IS IN THAT'S WHAT SECTION ñ MAYBE IT IS IN THAT
SPLIT SECOND, FOR YOU, BUT IT ISN'T FOR OTHER PEOPLE.
WE'RE ASKING YOU TO THINK ABOUT THAT, AND I GUESS WE ARE SOCIAL
JUSTICE WARRIORS BECAUSE WE ACTUALLY CARE ABOUT OTHER HUMAN
BEINGS.
I KNOW, IT'S DISGUSTING.
DISGUSTING AND UNACCEPTABLE, WHAT YOU SHOULD DO IS PUSH
OTHER PEOPLE AROUND, DEMEAN THEM, AND TRY TO HURT THEM,
BECAUSE THAT'S THE DECENT THING TO DO.
I PROBABLY WILL WEAR THAT LABEL, I LOVE BEING A SOCIAL
JUSTICE WARRIOR.
I'D RATHER BE A SOCIAL JUSTICE WARRIOR THAN A PIECE OF FUCKING
SHIT, OK?
THEY WILL SAY, SOCIAL JUSTICE WARRIORS DON'T CARE ABOUT
JUSTICE, THEY ARE THE ONES WHO ARE OVERLY EMOTIONAL AND STUFF.
PUSHING PEOPLE, AND PUSHING THEM AND PUSHING THEM AND PUSHING
THEM AND THEN GOING, WHAT ARE YOU GETTING SO EMOTIONAL FOR?
I GOT YOU!
BECAUSE I WAS AT A DICK HAD TO YOU AND YOU ARE MARK ñ
AND YOU REACTED IN AN EMOTIONAL WAY.
AGAIN, YOU THINK YOU ARE BEING SO SMART BY BEING SUCH DICKS
TO PEOPLE, BUT THAT'S NOT A SMART OR CLEVER THING TO DO.
AND I HOPE YOU GO UP ONE DAY ñ AND I'M NOT TRYING TO BE BETTER
THAN PEOPLE BY SAYING, YOU GUYS ARE IMMATURE, I'M SO MATURE.
I MAKE STUPID AND IMMATURE JOKES ALL THE TIME, BUT I TRY NOT
TO HURT OTHER PEOPLE WHILE DOING IT.
I DON'T THINK THAT'S TOO MUCH TO ASK FOR.
I DON'T THINK THAT'S TOO MUCH TO ASK FOR, AND LOOK, I'VE COME TO
THE REALIZATION THAT THE PEOPLE WHO GET THAT RISE OUT OF HIM YOU
KNOW, ATTACKING OTHERS, PUTTING OTHER PEOPLE DOWN, THOSE ARE
MISERABLE PEOPLE.
THEY ARE NOT HAPPY PEOPLE, SO THIS IS HOW
THEY GET JOY IN THEIR LIFE.
IF YOU SEE MEMES LIKE THAT, OR SEE PEOPLE GETTING ATTACKED, OR
YOU WILL HAVE NO EMOTION WHEN YOU SEE UNARMED INDIVIDUALS
GETTING SHOT AND KILLED, WELL I MEAN, LOOK, YOU'RE A SOCIOPATH.
SO I FEEL BAD FOR YOU, MORE THAN ANYTHING.
SO IF YOU WANT TO ATTACK ME FOR BEING OVERLY EMOTIONAL, OR FOR
PASSIONATELY DEFENDING THOSE WHO ARE DEFENSELESS, THEN GO
AHEAD, YOU CAN ATTACK ME ALL YOU WANT.
BUT AM I SAYING I'M BETTER THAN YOU?
I GUESS I'M GOING A LITTLE FURTHER THAN YOU ARE, YEAH,
I'M TALKING BETTER THAN YOU, MUCH BETTER THAN YOU.
YOU ARE GARBAGE.
IF YOU GET A RISE OUT OF ATTACKING THE POWERLESS,
YOU ARE GARBAGE.
WHEN YOU CALL ME ñ YOU CAN CALL ME A SOCIAL JUSTICE WARRIOR, YOU
CAN CALL ME WHATEVER THE FUCK YOU WANT.
AT THIS POINT, I DON'T GIVE A SHIT.
THAT'S WHO I AM AND THAT'S WHAT IT IS.
IS NOT A MATTER OF WHO IS BETTER THAN SOMEONE, WHO IS RICH
AND FAMOUS, NO, IT IS ABOUT WHO IS A DECENT HUMAN BEING.
IF YOU THINK THAT IS A FUNNY STANDARD, WHY WOULD YOU
WANT TO BE A DECENT HUMAN BEING?
THEN YOU SHOULD PROBABLY WEAR THE LABEL OF SOCIOPATH.
YEAH, I GET A KICK OUT OF NOT CARING ABOUT ANYONE ELSE IN
HUMANITY.
SO, CONGRATULATIONS?
OKAY?
LET ME END ON THIS NOTE, FOR THE PEOPLE WHO ARE UPSET ABOUT ALL
OF THIS, ANA IS RIGHT.
THEY ARE TRYING TO GET A RISE OUT OF YOU, AND THEY ARE MAKING
FUN OF YOU FOR CARING ABOUT SOMETHING, WHETHER IT'S
HARAMBE, OR OTHER CREATURES OR OTHER RACES, DON'T LET THEM GET
UNDER YOUR SKIN TOO MUCH, BECAUSE REMEMBER, THEIR MAIN JOY
IS TO CAUSE GRIEF TO OTHER PEOPLE.
HOW MUCH MUST THEIR LIFE SUCK?
SO NO MATTER HOW LOW YOU GET FROM WHAT THEIR SITUATION
IS, JUST REMEMBER, THAT GUY SITTING THERE SOMEWHERE,
WHOSE ONLY JOY IN LIFE IS TO TRY TO MAKE OTHER PEOPLE MISERABLE.
IT'S DOESN'T REALLY GET MUCH WORSE THAN THAT, SO WHEN YOU ARE
DOWN, THINK ABOUT THAT POOR SON OF A BITCH, WHOSE ONLY JOY
IN LIFE IS MEANNESS AND CAUSING PAIN TO OTHERS.
GOD, WHO WOULD WANT TO BE THAT IDIOT?