Spectacle

1. The Bronx Zoo's Dehumanizing Spectacle of Ota Benga

"But if he was wholly human, would he be in a cage in a fetid monkey house?"

A Shocking Exhibition. In September 1906, Ota Benga, a young man from the Congo, became a global sensation when he was exhibited in a cage with an orangutan at the Bronx Zoo's Primate House. Tens of thousands of New Yorkers flocked to witness the spectacle, with many questioning his humanity due to his small stature and filed teeth. The zoo director, William Temple Hornaday, proudly promoted the exhibit, hoping to enhance his reputation and draw crowds.

Public Outrage and Justification. The exhibition sparked immediate controversy, particularly among the city's black clergy. Hornaday, however, dismissed the protests, insisting the exhibit was a "scientific" ethnological display to show "how things were done in Africa." He claimed Benga was in the primate house because it was "the most comfortable place we could find for him," despite the stench and constant gawking. The New York Times initially echoed scientific views, suggesting Benga was "very low in the human scale" and that school would be "a place of torture to him."

Benga's Resistance. Despite the zoo's attempts to portray him as content, Benga grew increasingly restless and combative. He was pursued, poked, and tripped by unruly crowds, leading him to strike visitors and resist keepers. His distress was palpable, and he reportedly expressed his dislike for America. This resistance, coupled with mounting public pressure, eventually forced Hornaday to consider his release.

2. Samuel Verner's Exploitative Quest for Fame and Fortune

"Regardless of how he secured Benga, what is known is that Verner had been commissioned by organizers of the St. Louis World’s Fair of 1904 to procure so-called pygmies."

A Missionary Turned "Explorer." Samuel Phillips Verner, a former Presbyterian missionary from South Carolina, was the man responsible for bringing Ota Benga to the United States. Driven by ambition and chronic financial desperation, Verner sought to make a name for himself as an African explorer and scientist. He presented shifting, often contradictory, narratives about how he acquired Benga, frequently portraying himself as Benga's savior from "cannibalistic savages" while exploiting him for profit and recognition.

Financial Desperation and Deception. Verner's financial woes were constant, leading him to write bad checks, sell specimens, and seek advances from institutions like the Smithsonian and the American Museum of Natural History. He exaggerated his scientific credentials and connections, even claiming personal friendship with King Leopold II to secure concessions and funding. His willingness to fabricate stories, such as Benga's alleged cannibalism or his own heroic rescues, underscored his ruthless ambition.

Abandonment and Responsibility. After depositing Benga at the Bronx Zoo, Verner conspicuously left New York, citing a flood in North Carolina as the reason for his delayed return. This abandonment left Hornaday grappling with an increasingly unmanageable Benga and mounting public criticism. Verner's actions consistently demonstrated a striking lack of compassion or empathy for Benga, viewing him primarily as a means to advance his own career and financial standing.

3. King Leopold's Brutal Reign in the Congo: A Backdrop of Atrocities

"Your Majesty’s Government has sequestered their land, burned their towns, stolen their property, enslaved their women and children, and committed other crimes too numerous to mention in detail."

A Land of Horror. Ota Benga's capture and exploitation occurred against the backdrop of King Leopold II's savage rule over the Congo Free State (1885-1908). This period was marked by widespread atrocities, including the systematic murder, torture, and enslavement of millions of Congolese people. Leopold enriched himself by plundering the country's vast resources, particularly rubber and ivory, enforcing labor through brutal methods like rape, mutilation, and murder.

Early Exposures and International Outrage. The horrors of Leopold's regime were first exposed in 1890 by George Washington Williams, an African American Civil War veteran and journalist, who famously coined the term "crimes against humanity" to describe the situation. Later, British consul Roger Casement's detailed report in 1904 corroborated these allegations, documenting widespread forced labor, mutilations, and killings. These reports, along with works by E.D. Morel and Mark Twain's "King Leopold's Soliloquy," fueled international outrage.

Vulnerability of the Congolese. The pervasive violence and exploitation rendered the Congolese people, especially forest dwellers like Benga, extremely vulnerable to slave traders and opportunistic "explorers" like Verner. Villages were raided, populations decimated, and people chained and forced to work. Benga's personal experience, though unrecorded, almost certainly involved witnessing or enduring some of this carnage, making his "choice" to accompany Verner back to America a desperate one against a backdrop of genocide.

4. Science and Academia's Role in Legitimizing Racial Hierarchies

"The idea that men are all much alike except as they have had or lacked opportunities for getting an education of books is now far out of date."

Justifying Exploitation. The exhibition of Ota Benga was not an isolated incident but was deeply rooted in the prevailing scientific and social ideologies of the era. Prominent scientists and academics, including Henry Fairfield Osborn (co-founder of the Bronx Zoo) and figures like Louis Agassiz and Daniel Garrison Brinton, actively promoted theories of racial hierarchy. These theories positioned Europeans at the top of a "ladder of civilization" and Africans at the bottom, often describing them as "inferior," "degenerate," or "ape-like."

Eugenics and "Arrested Development." The concept of "arrested development" was frequently applied to justify the perceived inferiority of black people, suggesting they were closer to anthropoid apes. This pseudo-scientific framework was used to rationalize the exhibition of Benga and others, dismissing their suffering or potential for intellectual growth. Institutions like the Eugenics Records Office, funded by wealthy philanthropists, further entrenched these ideas, influencing immigration and sterilization laws.

Anthropology's Complicity. The St. Louis World's Fair, where Benga was first exhibited, explicitly aimed to illustrate human development "from the dark prime to the highest enlightenment, from savagery to civic organization." Anthropologists like William John McGee, head of the fair's ethnology department, actively sought out "primitive" peoples for display. Even the American Museum of Natural History, under Franz Boas, commissioned life casts of these individuals, including Benga, for scientific study, further objectifying them.

5. Black Clergy and Activists Lead the Fight for Benga's Humanity

"Our race, we think, is depressed enough, without exhibiting one of us with apes. We think we are worthy of being considered human beings, with souls."

Outrage and Mobilization. The exhibition of Ota Benga at the Bronx Zoo ignited immediate and fierce protests from New York City's black clergy. Led by influential figures like Reverend Dr. Robert Stuart MacArthur of Calvary Baptist Church and Reverend Dr. Matthew William Gilbert of Mount Olivet Baptist Church, they condemned the display as a moral outrage and an "unpardonable insult to humanity." They quickly organized an emergency meeting and formed a committee to demand Benga's release.

Challenging Authority. The clergy, under the leadership of Reverend James H. Gordon, superintendent of the Howard Colored Orphan Asylum, directly confronted the powerful institutions involved. They appealed to Mayor George Brinton McClellan Jr. and Madison Grant, secretary of the Zoological Society, insisting on Benga's human dignity and right to education. Their efforts were bolstered by civil rights lawyer Wilford H. Smith and wealthy white businessman John Henry E. Milholland, who pledged financial support for a lawsuit.

Securing Deliverance. Despite initial resistance and attempts by Hornaday to downplay the situation, the sustained pressure from the black community proved effective. The threat of legal action and the growing public scandal forced the Zoological Society to release Benga. Reverend Gordon, refusing to sign an agreement that would return Benga to Verner's custody, took Benga into the care of the Howard Colored Orphan Asylum, marking a significant victory for human rights and racial justice.

6. The St. Louis World's Fair: A Precedent for Human Exhibition

"The pygmy derives from the smallest known variety of mankind, they are notable also for imperfect development of language, for skill and courage in the chase, and for timidity in the presence of larger men."

A Global Village of "Progress." The 1904 St. Louis World's Fair, commemorating the Louisiana Purchase, was designed to showcase human development from "savagery to civic organization." It featured some ten thousand people from around the world, including Native Americans, Filipinos, and the highly anticipated "African Pygmies" brought by Samuel Verner. This grand display aimed to illustrate the supposed superiority of Western civilization and justify American imperialism.

Dehumanizing Portrayals. Benga and his fellow Congolese were exoticized and dehumanized from the moment of their arrival. News reports sensationalized them as "red pygmies and black," practicing cannibalism, and making "excellent servants." Fair officials, including David Francis, explicitly described Benga as "notably cannibalistic" and claimed his filed teeth were evidence of "feasts of human flesh." These portrayals reinforced racist stereotypes and served to entertain the masses.

Objectification and Scientific Study. Beyond public exhibition, the African visitors were subjected to extensive "scientific" scrutiny. They were measured, photographed, and tested in "Laboratories of Anthropometry and Psychometry." Plaster busts, including those of Benga and Kondola, were made from life, intended for circulation to museums across the country. This process further reduced them to mere specimens for study, stripping them of their individuality and dignity.

7. A Search for Refuge: From Orphanage to Southern Comfort

"He has been converted and baptized, and says he expects to go to Africa to preach to his people."

A New Home in Weeksville. After his release from the Bronx Zoo, Ota Benga found refuge at the Howard Colored Orphan Asylum in Weeksville, Brooklyn. This thriving African American community, known for its self-sufficiency and pride, offered a stark contrast to his previous captivity. Under the care of Superintendent James H. Gordon and house matron Mary Gordon, Benga was given his own room, ate with staff, and began learning English, marking a significant step towards reclaiming his dignity.

Life on Howard's Farm. As the orphanage grew overcrowded, Benga, along with other boys, was moved to Howard's 160-acre farm in St. James, Long Island. Here, he worked half-days and attended school, with the hope of being trained as a missionary. Despite the challenges of rural life and the farm's financial struggles, Benga's time there was a period of relative stability, though he eventually sought employment on a nearby farm to save money for his return home.

Lynchburg and a Surrogate Family. In 1910, Benga moved to Lynchburg, Virginia, to live with Mary Hayes Allen, the widow of Reverend Gregory W. Hayes, president of the Virginia Theological Seminary. Known as "Otto Bingo," he found a surrogate family and a community that embraced him. He became a beloved mentor to neighborhood boys, teaching them hunting and foraging skills, and found comfort in Mary Allen's cooking and the communal rituals of hog-killing season, which resonated with his hunter culture.

8. The Lingering Trauma and Ota Benga's Tragic End

"Me no like America."

A Deepening Longing for Home. Despite finding a supportive community in Lynchburg, Benga's decade in America was marked by an "all-consuming longing to go home." He had endured profound trauma—the genocide of his people, capture, and public dehumanization—which likely contributed to depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress. The prospect of never returning to his homeland, coupled with the outbreak of World War I, intensified his despair.

Isolation and Despair. Benga, isolated by language and culture, remained a stranger in a strange land. He had no known intimate relationships and, despite the kindness shown to him, felt a "piercing rupture" and "vacuous eternity of alienation." His ritualistic dances and chants around a fire, witnessed by the neighborhood boys, revealed a "profound and boundless sorrow," signaling his deep emotional distress and yearning for his lost life.

Suicide as a Final Act. On March 20, 1916, Ota Benga took his own life with a pistol shot to his heart in a hayloft behind Mammy Joe's store. His death certificate, listing him as "Otto Bingo" with unknown parentage and birthdate, reflected the erasure of his true identity. His suicide was a tragic culmination of years of exploitation, displacement, and the crushing realization that his dream of returning to his ancestral home was unattainable.

9. Historical Denial and the Unacknowledged Injustice

"The story, though denied, persisted, and Ota became the center of a discussion in which the public became interested."

Rewriting History. Following Benga's death, institutions and individuals involved in his exploitation engaged in a concerted effort to deny or downplay their roles. William Temple Hornaday, the Bronx Zoo director, brazenly claimed Benga "elected to stay" at the park and that "charitably-inclined persons" had "conceived" the idea of his exhibition. He dismissed reports of his captivity as "unfounded" and an "urban legend," despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary.

Verner's Continued Self-Aggrandizement. Samuel Verner, Benga's captor, continued to spin self-serving narratives, portraying himself as Benga's friend and savior. He claimed Benga was never exhibited but merely "employed" by the zoo and that he had offered Benga choices to return to Africa or work in Panama, which Benga supposedly declined. Verner's accounts consistently aimed to absolve himself of responsibility and enhance his own reputation as an explorer.

A Century of Silence and Subterfuge. For decades, the true story of Ota Benga remained largely obscured by these denials and historical revisionism. The Wildlife Conservation Society (formerly the New York Zoological Society) continued to offer vague or misleading accounts of the episode. It was not until recent years, through renewed scholarship and advocacy, that Benga's story began to be accurately reclaimed, challenging the egregious fallacies that had dishonored his memory for nearly a century.

Last updated: December 11, 2025