British conservation activist Damian Aspinall recorded this video more than 20 years ago, when his daughter Tansy was just 18 months old; he decided to release it in recent days to raise awareness of endangered gorillas and show their gentle nature.
Unfortunately, Aspinall has suffered quite the backlash -- 85 percent of voters in a Today show poll said they considered his actions to be "irresponsible parenting" and were concerned that letting a toddler play with 300-pound gorillas wasn't safe.
Tansy Aspinall, now 23, defends her father: "I don't remember specifically that video but I definitely remember going in with the animals and just loving being around them. It was playing with another brother or sister, really. ... My dad would never put me in with an overly aggressive gorilla, ever."
Hey, it was the '80s -- can't we just agree that the video is adorable?
[abcnews]