monkey man hysteria

From: Vincent Campbell (v.p.campbell@stir.ac.uk)
Date: Thu May 17 2001 - 10:29:39 BST

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    From: Vincent Campbell <v.p.campbell@stir.ac.uk>
    To: "'memetics@mmu.ac.uk'" <memetics@mmu.ac.uk>
    Subject: monkey man hysteria
    Date: Thu, 17 May 2001 10:29:39 +0100
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    Hiya everyone,

    Here's a news article from today's 'Metro' newspaper here in the UK
    (17/5/01, p: 12). Lots of layers of interest here...

    TWO DIE IN FEAR OF MONKEY MAN

    by Suzanne Stevenson

    Two people have been killed and dozens injured in mass hysteria sparked by
    bizarre reports of a mysterious 'monkey man'.

    Panic swept through India's capital Delhi following reports of late-night
    attacks by the ape-like creature which, it is claimed, has clawed and bitten
    scores of people during the last fortnight.

    A pregnant woman died on Tuesday when she fell down a staircase while trying
    to escape after neighbours shouted that the beast was coming.

    Two nights earlier, a man was killed when he leapt in terror from a
    two-storey building screaming: 'The monkey has come'.

    Those claiming to have been attacked have given bizarre descriptions of the
    beast. They say it is about 4ft tall with a hairy body, sharp claws and an
    ape-like face.

    Industrial worker Prakash Chand, 37, said: 'I woke up when I heard this
    strange growling sound. It was very well-built and whacked me hard on my
    arm.'

    He said he wrestled the creature, which jumped off the first floor terrace
    and vanished into the darkness. About 1,000 police officers are involved in
    the search but thousands of vigilantes have also taken to the streets armed
    with sticks and chanting 'Kill him, kill him.'

    At least two short men have been beaten up after being mistaken for the
    creature, which has been spotted more than 50 times in a single night.

    Police chiefs have blamed the panic on uneducated superstitious people,
    whose fears may be increased by dark nights during electricity cuts.

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