Ten years ago, a 17-year-old western lowland silverback gorilla named Harambe became the center of one of the internet’s most emotionally charged viral moments following his 2016 demise.
Born on May 27, 1999, at the Gladys Porter Zoo in Brownsville, Texas, Harambe was named by Dan Van Coppenolle, a local counselor who won a naming contest, after Rita Marley’s 1988 song, "Harambe (Working Together for Freedom)."
His mother, Kayla, brother, Makoko, and half-sister, Uzuri, passed away from accidental chlorine gas po*soning in 2002. In 2014, he was transferred to the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden, where he remained until his infamous passing.
