On August 20th, 1994, in front of hundreds of horrified circus spectators, Tyke, a full-grown female African elephant, mauled her groomer, deliberately trampled and killed her trainer and then escaped onto the streets of Kaka'ako, Hawaii. There the animal nearly killed another man before Honolulu police riddled her with bullets from high-powered rifles and were finally able to bring her down. In the aftermath, Tyke became the poster elephant for circus tragedies and a symbol for animal rights.

Tyke is depicted here with strong colors and a striking stance that is reminiscent of the famous Che Guevara images and Barak Obama’s “Hope” campaign.  Such familiar images can accord their subjects iconic status and become reference points or symbols for social change and various ideals.  In this way, the simple likeness of Obama plastered all over the USA helped Obama the man became a symbol of hope and the promise of change.  With the passing of time these images often remain recognizable while they become devoid of the original principles they were once associated with.  For example, many would recognize or even wear the image of Che on a t-shirt without any knowledge of who he was or what he did. Like Che, Tyke was a murderer, though to many both she and him represent revolutionaries who had to do this in order to stand up against oppression.