Happy the elephant spent more than two decades in solitary confinement at the Bronx Zoo — isolated on concrete, hidden from the public, denied the companionship that elephants need to survive. She was one of the first elephants documented to demonstrate self-recognition. She deserved sanctuary. Instead, she died in a zoo.

Patty, the last elephant at the Bronx Zoo, has been alone since 2018. The Association of Zoos and Aquariums states that no elephant should live in a herd of fewer than three. The Bronx Zoo has violated that standard for years. Neither Happy nor Patty ever knew what it was to live as an elephant should.

No other elephant should endure what they did.

New York City has the power to make sure that never happens again. We're calling on the New York City Council to pass legislation prohibiting elephant captivity in the five boroughs — closing the door permanently on solitary confinement, concrete enclosures, and institutional neglect for one of the most cognitively advanced animals on earth.

Happy's death must mean something. Vote yes.