Nn circa 1883, Ota Benga was a Congolese pygmy who was exhibited at the Bronx Zoo in New York in 1906. Ota was captured following a raid on his village. His wife and two children were killed in the attack. Benga arrived in the United States with a contract for the Universal Exhibition of 1904 thanks to businessman and missionary Samuel Phillips Verner. Verner negotiated the release of Benga with slave traders. Benga was able to roam his enclosure freely and interact with customers. It was then exhibited as an animal in the “Monkey House” zoo as part of an exhibition designed to promote concepts of human evolution. Public protests eventually led to Benga's removal from the zoo and he was placed in the care of the African American clergy. He lived in a local orphanage until his transfer to Lynchburg, Virginia in 1910. He was educated in the American way of life. He was dressed in the western style and he went to primary school. When World War I began, he realized that his return to the Congo was impossible. He became depressed. In 1916, he committed suicide with a revolver he had stolen.
The Congolese pygmy exposed in an American zoo: In the footsteps of Ota Benga
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Is Adult Product | |
Release Date | 2011-02-01T00:00:01Z |
Language | Français |
Number Of Pages | 138 |
Publication Date | 2011-02-01T00:00:01Z |