# Human exhibit at London zoo. Londoners, please tell me you're just bored. **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 29, 2005, 8:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/human-exhibit-at-london-zoo-londoners-please-tell-me-youre-just-bored/319082 "2005-08-29T08:49:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 8:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/human-exhibit-at-london-zoo-londoners-please-tell-me-youre-just-bored/319082/1 "2005-08-29T08:49:41Z")
From [here.](http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20050825/wl_uk_afp/britainoffbeatzoo;_ylt=Am63cUpyS.kWzwQE5AiJXpQPLBIF;_ylu=X3oDMTBiMW04NW9mBHNlYwMlJVRPUCUl) > [@](#): > > The “Human Zoo” is intended to show the basic nature of human beings as they frolick throughout the August bank holiday weekend. > > “We have set up this exhibit to highlight the spread of man as a plague species and to communicate the importance of man’s place in the planet’s ecosystem,” London Zoo said. > > The scantily-clad volunteers will be treated as animals and kept amused at the central London zoo with games and music. > > “I actually think the fig leaves will be enough to cover us up, it’s no worse than a swimming pool,” said volunteer Simon Spiro, 19, from New Malden, south of the British capital. This is the silliest thing I’ve seen in a long while. And what’s with the fig leaves? Please tell me they didn’t really wear fig leaves. I mean, at what point in our evolution did we walk around wearing fig leaves? Oh, wait. That wasn’t evolution, that was a bible story. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 12:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/human-exhibit-at-london-zoo-londoners-please-tell-me-youre-just-bored/319082/2 "2005-08-29T12:10:15Z")
The pictures seem to show them wearing bathing suits, not fig leaves, which I suspect is the newspaper writer’s imposition on the situation. When I lived in Binghamton, N.Y. one summer they had a stunt with the unveiling of a new creature at Ross Park Zoo. It turned out to be one of the local DJs. They let him out at the end of the day, though. I keep hearing that about a hundred years ago they actually had a black guy from Africa as an exhibit at the Bronx Zoo. I haven’t confirmed this, but I’ve seen it reported in multiple places. They also report that he wasn’t locked in or anything, and was free to roam the grounds. I sure hope those people in London get an enclosed area for bathroom breaks. ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/human-exhibit-at-london-zoo-londoners-please-tell-me-youre-just-bored/319082/3 "2005-08-29T13:18:05Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > I keep hearing that about a hundred years ago they actually had a black guy from Africa as an exhibit at the Bronx Zoo. I haven’t confirmed this, but I’ve seen it reported in multiple places. They also report that he wasn’t locked in or anything, and was free to roam the grounds. You’re thinking of [Ota Benga.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ota_Benga) Accounts vary a bit, but it seems that at first, he was allowed to roam the grounds, locked only in the cage at night, but others state that he was kept locked in the cage with the oragutans. Do a search. You’ll find lots of pages, but, just to let you know, a good portion of them are Christian anti-evolution pages. Another person who was kept in a cage was [Saartje Baartman,](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saartje_Baartman) The Hottentot Venus." After she died, her brain, genitals and skeleton were put on dislay. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/human-exhibit-at-london-zoo-londoners-please-tell-me-youre-just-bored/319082/4 "2005-08-29T15:13:12Z")
[Remember this thread?](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=298346) ---
**Author:** ![Wonko\_The\_Sane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/258eb7/32.png) [@Wonko\_The\_Sane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wonko_The_Sane)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/human-exhibit-at-london-zoo-londoners-please-tell-me-youre-just-bored/319082/5 "2005-08-29T21:59:45Z")
Wouldn’t a mirror be cheaper, and easier than paying people to stay in the cage? What happens if a fight breaks out in there, or between a zoo patron and the exhibit inhabitant(s)? What about escape attempts, and possible unionization of the denizens of the exhibition? Hmm… ---
**Author:** ![CynicalGabe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@CynicalGabe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CynicalGabe)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/human-exhibit-at-london-zoo-londoners-please-tell-me-youre-just-bored/319082/6 "2005-08-29T22:52:07Z")
> [@Wonko The Sane](#): > > Wouldn’t a mirror be cheaper, and easier than paying people to stay in the cage? What happens if a fight breaks out in there, or between a zoo patron and the exhibit inhabitant(s)? What about escape attempts, and possible unionization of the denizens of the exhibition? > > Hmm… Nuts to that - what happens if they start flinging poo?? ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2005, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/human-exhibit-at-london-zoo-londoners-please-tell-me-youre-just-bored/319082/7 "2005-08-30T05:24:09Z")
“You were right… People are the same all over!” ---
**Author:** ![zoogirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b9bd4f/32.png) [@zoogirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoogirl)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2005, 5:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/human-exhibit-at-london-zoo-londoners-please-tell-me-youre-just-bored/319082/8 "2005-08-30T05:39:42Z")
Well, as a tour guide, I guess you could say I _am_ part of the exhibit! (sigh) Most days I’m at work longer than I’m home. I might as well live there… ---
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2005, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/human-exhibit-at-london-zoo-londoners-please-tell-me-youre-just-bored/319082/9 "2005-08-30T13:11:02Z")
Actually, they are in very obvious bathing suits decorated with fig leaves. Not really a hint of salaciousness. They are fed meals by chefs & treated quite nicely while on display. The participants won a contest to be selected for the exhibit. ---
**Author:** ![Giant\_Spongess](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/94ad74/32.png) [@Giant\_Spongess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giant_Spongess)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2005, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/human-exhibit-at-london-zoo-londoners-please-tell-me-youre-just-bored/319082/10 "2005-08-30T17:02:55Z")
> [@](#): > > Brendan Carr, 25, from Aylesbury, southern England, wrote a poem in his bid to get on the mountain. > > “I’m funky like a monkey and as cool as a cat, talk more than a parrot, up all night like a bat,” it went. So…he got into an exhibit displaying humans…by comparing himself…to _other animals_… :smack: ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2005, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/human-exhibit-at-london-zoo-londoners-please-tell-me-youre-just-bored/319082/11 "2005-08-30T17:14:31Z")
It’s another lame brained attempt at another “reality” show. Nothing to see here folks. Keep moving please. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2005, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/human-exhibit-at-london-zoo-londoners-please-tell-me-youre-just-bored/319082/12 "2005-08-30T18:06:28Z")
> [@runner pat](#): > > [Remember this thread?](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=298346) That’s what I thought of when I saw this thread (no big surprise).