Human Zoos: The Six Pygmies from Africa

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Shorter Isn’t Subhuman “The year was 1906. This was a pygmy, brought to America as a novelty to be put on display in the monkey house [...] They chased him about the grounds all day, howling, jeering, and yelling. Some of them poked him in the ribs, others tripped him up, all laughed at him” (The “Pygmies”). William McGee, an American showman and anthropologist, opened the world’s first Human Zoo. He wanted to feature people who he depicted as exotic or unusual. Among all of the people that McGee brought to this Human Zoo, the six Pygmies from Africa stood out to the white customers. The customers treated the Pygmies like caged animals. Ota Benga, one of the Pygmies, was only a boy, though the article didn’t bother to mention his age. The Pygmies primitive lifestyle and their small size has caused them to be victims of violence from various groups of people (Hale). The Pygmies have a very intimate relationship with the rainforest. The reason being, is because the Pygmies have lived in, protected, and worshipped the rainforest for generations. The rainforest was their home, it is the source of their religion, and their identity in a way that nobody understands but the Pygmies. Originally, small groups of Pygmies moved to different places within the rainforest gathering different forest products like wild honey and exchanging different types of goods with other settled societies. Unlike the people in the United States, the Pygmies weren’t just handed food, they had to hunt. They used bows and arrows, spears, and nets to catch different types of animals. Many of the Pygmy groups were displaced because of logging, expansions of farms by farmers, and commercial activities. The Pygmies were very spiritual in their beliefs of t... ... middle of paper ... ... the respect that they had before the genocide. Works Cited Zahara, John. “Planet Ivy”. Planet Ivy Media, 16 July 2012. Web. 1 May 2014. . “Survival International.” Survival International Charitable Trust, n.d. Web. 1 May 2014. . There wasn’t a date or an author documented. “World without Genocide.” William Mitchell College of Law, n.d. Web. 1 May 2014. . There wasn’t a date or an author documented. Hale, Beth. “Mail Online.” Associated Newspapers, 30 Oct. 2009. Web. 1 May 2014. Caged-human-zoo-The-shocking-story-young-pygmy-warrior-monkey-house--fuelled-Hitl ers-twisted-beliefs.html>.

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