By now the identity of the mother whose child wandered into a gorilla enclosure last week is all over the internet, and in true 2016 fashion, social media is having an absolute field day tearing her apart.
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Many believe it’s her fault that the kid wandered into the enclosure, even though she was looking after a large group and, after all, it’s not her fault there’s a gap in the enclosure big enough for a child to fit through.
However, much of the anger on social media has been directed towards the wrong Michelle Gregg, who has been getting lit up with abusive messages despite living 200 miles from the zoo.
Once she figured out what the hell was going on, she changed her FB profile picture to this:
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She also wrote:
Yesterday I received a crazy amount of friend requests… I don’t really keep up with the news, however I am very familiar with the 4-year-old boy who made his way into the gorilla exhibit at the Cincinnati Zoo.
I literally just found out his mother’s name is Michelle Gregg… yikes! So I instantly go check my ‘filtered’ email and find a bunch of hate emails.
I have had many conversations this morning with people I don’t even know. A few people have apologised who have sent me messages.
Here are some examples she provided:
That’s the internet for you. So ready to shame the fuck out of someone that they don’t even stop to make sure it’s the right person.
Meanwhile, the REAL Michelle Gregg says:
For those of you that have seen the news or been on social media, that was my son that fell in the gorilla exhibit at the zoo. God looked after my child until the authorities were able to get to him.
My son is safe and was able to walk away with a concussion and a few scrapes… no broken bones or internal injuries.
As a society we are quick to judge how a parent could take their eyes off of their child and if anyone knows me I keep a tight watch on my kids.
Accidents happen but I am thankful that the right people were in the right place today.
R.I.P. Harambe the gorilla. As terrible as the situation is, at least the young boy will have an awesome story to tell his future girlfriends off the back of it.
