There Are At Least Two Michelle Gregg’s In Ohio, And The One Whose Son Didn’t Get A Gorilla Killed Is Getting Tons Of Hate Anyway


As you are no doubt aware by now, an Ohio woman named Michelle Gregg is the mother of a boy whose actions led to the death of Harambe, a beloved gorilla at the Cincinnati Zoo. What you may not know is that Michelle Gregg is not a particularly uncommon name, and at least one other Michelle Gregg who lives in Ohio is getting a lot of hate even though she had nothing to do with Harambe’s death.

On May 28, a 3-year-old boy somehow managed to make his way into the enclosure of Harambe, a 17-year-old gorilla. Zoo officials made the decision to shoot and kill the animal to save the boy’s life.

The mother of that boy was later identified as Michelle Gregg of Cincinnati. That Michelle Gregg is African American, and looks like this.

Rightly or wrongly, that Michelle Gregg has been the subject of intense hate on social media. Whether or not that hatred is justifiable is a matter for another article, of course, but regardless, she and her family have been at the heart of a torrent of outrage directed at her for her role in Harambe’s death.

As it turns out, however, there is at least one other Michelle Gregg in Ohio, and like the Cincinnati mom, she has a Facebook account. Unfortunately for her, internet vigilantes with an axe to grind aren’t known for their thoroughness and meticulous attention to detail. Simply searching for “Michelle Gregg Ohio” has led far too many users to another woman named Michelle Gregg — a woman who lives nowhere near Cincinnati and has never been to the Cincinnati Zoo.

And she’s white.

Speaking to WTOL-TV (Toledo), the Weston, Ohio, woman (Weston is about 160 miles from Cincinnati) remarked on how lazy internet haters are.

“It is crazy that they typed in my name, saw that I was from Ohio, saw that I had a little boy, and assumed that I was her.”

At first, Gregg tried to silence her haters by reminding them that they had the wrong woman — although as anyone who has ever attempted to argue with an internet troll can tell you, it’s a fool’s errand. She also personally responded to the rare commenter who sympathized with her.

“People that were hateful, I thought they needed to know that I wasn’t the person that they were looking for, and for the people who were being positive, I wanted to thank them.”

Fortunately for the Weston Michelle Gregg, the messages, both positive and negative, seem to be tapering off. However, the experience has reminded her of what a horrifying time the Cincinnati Michelle Gregg must be having.

“I know how she feels because I’m receiving a ton of email that’s directed towards her, and I’m sorry that everything is happening to her like this, and I know what a child is capable of in a blink of an eye.”

As for the Cincinnati Michelle Gregg, it appears as if the hate has become too much for her. According to the International Business Times, she has deleted her Facebook account and has gone on social media lockdown as the aftermath of Harambe’s death plays out. As of this writing, she is not currently facing criminal charges from the Cincinnati police, but Hamilton County, Ohio, Prosecutor Joe Deters has vowed to “look into” the matter and will announce by Friday whether or not he will file charges against Michelle Gregg.

[Image via Facebook]

Share this article: There Are At Least Two Michelle Gregg’s In Ohio, And The One Whose Son Didn’t Get A Gorilla Killed Is Getting Tons Of Hate Anyway
More from Inquisitr