When Animals Fight Back – Fear of the Animal Planet: The Hidden History of Animal Resistance

When Jason Hribal’s book, “Fear of the Animal Planet: The Hidden History of Animal Resistance“, arrived in the mail, I was excited, and intrigued. I wasn’t unfamiliar with the topic, thanks to articles such as pattrice jones’ “Stomping With Elephants” in “Igniting a Revolution“, and I was interested to read more.

Jason Hribal stumbled on this topic when he began studying history under Peter Linebaugh. In Jason’s own words (emphasis mine):

I wanted to understand history from below. That fall, I took a research seminar on the Gilded Age, and the topic I chose to write about was the Toledo Zoo. It could have ended up being a standard history: the zoo and its directors, their curatorial ideas and the evolution in exhibit design, and a list of animals. Yet, my work with Linebaugh led me to see the research material in a new light. Information that I would have previously missed or passed over now became evident. More specifically, I noticed that the captive animals were resisting and that the resistance was having an effect. The zoo and the circus no longer remained the hero.

He takes us through many stories, going back to some of the earliest zoos and circuses, and the picture is damning. The trauma to the individuals and the communities, wrenched from their families, often at the same instant they are orphaned, forced into unnatural caged lives filled with servitude for the profit of others, and usually ending with their own untimely death, does not paint a pretty picture of the human demand for entertainment.

Yet there is also hope. Through the bloody history of the elephants in circuses, you begin to see the impact that the elephants’ resistance is having on both the mindset of the public as well as the government. The death of Tyke in Honolulu, Hawai’i in 1994 sparked many people into action, including the founding of the Hohenwald Elephant Sanctuary, and many circus protests around the globe. (p. 59-60) Tyke’s death was one in a very long list of elephants gunned to death, poisoned, electrocuted, or hung for resisting their captors, and hers was far from the last. However, the pressure is on.

Tyke, the elephant, may have died that autumn day in 1994, but her actions proved far from futile. She was part of a larger struggle against oppression and exploitation: Jumbo, Mary, Janet , Debbie, Frieda. Indeed, her resistance that day altered the course of history. Humans were inspired into action. The city of Honolulu never again hosted a circus. Hawthorn has never again touched an elephant. Tyke’s adopted sisters and brothers are now living out their lives in peace. The legacy of Tyke remains engraved in the memories of animal lovers around the world.

Elephants in zoos have gone through a similar bloody history of resistance, with similar end results. Zoos resist admitting that they can’t properly care for elephants, going so far as the American Zoo Association denying that Hohenwald even exists. But death is no longer the automatic answer for elephants who have become “problems”, as it used to be before there were sanctuaries, before the public was engaged. The mindset of some zookeepers seems to be changing, and elephants are now quietly being shipped to the sanctuaries, at least some of the time.

As the rider who Flora attacked in 1999 explained: “I just think elephants are not meant to be captive. as they mature, they get to a point where they aren’t going to take it any more. It’s not her fault, she’s just becoming more and more unhappy.” (p. 91)

The book takes you through similar upsetting histories for both monkeys as well as sea mammals. As with elephants, a pattern slowly emerges. What once seemed hopeless, resistance ending only in death for the animals, now contains some hope. Some of this comes from the humans who join the fight, such as Ralph Munro witnessing the brutal capture of Orcas in the Puget sound, sparking him to not only file a lawsuit against Sea World, but to win the case and win the prohibition of capturing orcas in Puget Sound. (p. 146) The people of Alaska likewise refused to allow Sea World to capture orcas from their waters, and these actions have not only protected the orcas, it has had drastic financial implications for Sea World.

The zoos, circuses and aquariums would have the public believe that escapes and attacks are rare events, but “Fear of the Animal Planet” puts that myth to rest. These events are more common than the zoos and circuses want us to know.

Some might be skeptical of viewing this long and bloody history of animals escaping and attacking as resistance. Doesn’t resistance require agency? This too is addressed.

Every captive animal knows, through learned response and direct experience, which behaviors are rewarded and which ones are punished. These animals understand that there will be consequences for incorrect actions. If they refuse to perform, if they attack a trainer, or if they escape their cage, they know that they will be beaten, have their food rations reduced, and be placed in solitary confinement. Captive animals know all of this and yet they still carry out such actions – often with a profound sense of determination. This is why these behaviors can be understood as a true form of resistance. These animals, as will be shown throughout the book, are rebelling with knowledge and purpose. They have a concept of freedom and a desire for it. They have agency.

Though the stories were difficult for a tender heart to hear, it does an excellent job of showing that animals are not silent, that their actions speak of their resistance. By the end of the book, you will know that their resistance is real, and conscious, and that they are making progress.

Animal Voices interviewed Jason in January, well-worth listening to for both additional stories from the book as well as a better view of what stood out to Jason during his research.

A video interview with Ralph Munro on the Sea World capture of Orcas that he witnessed, and the subsequent lawsuit that resulted in Sea World being prohibited from capturing Orcas in that area:

A final thought, an African proverb that Jason quotes, illuminates the importance of a history such as “Fear of the Animal Planet”:

Until the lion has his historian, the hunter will always be a hero.

Also, my disclaimer: I bought this book myself, and this review was not solicited. I receive nothing in return for this review but the satisfaction of spreading information.