Have you heard of the term “Bystander efffect”. This came about after a 28 year old woman, Kitty, was raped, stabbed and murdered outside her apartment while 38 people looked on and did nothing.
This led to a research carried out in 1969, five years after Kitty’s murder, which was termed Bystander Apathy (effect). Basically, it proved that the more people there are available in an emergency situation, the less likelihood there is for someone to intervene.
Today’s poem reminds me of this story and forgive me for starting this post with a downer. But, I thought to share it because I believe we all need a reminder that as heavy as our words, our silence is also heavy too.
Town watches them take Alfonso by Ilya Kaminsky
Now each of us is
a witness stand:
Vasenka watches us watch four soldiers throw Alfonso Barabinski on the sidewalk.
We let them take him, all of us cowards.
What we don’t say
we carry in our suitcases, coat pockets, our nostrils.
Across the street they wash him with fire hoses. First he screams,
then he stops.
So much sunlight—
a t-shirt falls off a clothes line and an old man stops, picks it up, presses it to his face.
Neighbors line up to watch him thrown on a sidewalk like a vaudeville act: Ta Da.
In so much sunlight—
how each of us
is a witness stand:
They take Alfonso
And no one stands up. Our silence stands up for us.
Randoms by a Random 
Too sad for words!
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It really is!
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These days bystanders don’t just stand. They may also take pictures and post to social media… while still not helping.
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It is really a sad state… we need to do better than just document for fun
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I hear a lot of stories like this, and I always wonder how…how people can stand there and do nothing. But we all do, in one way or another…one crime or another. We stand there, thinking someone will act. No one does.
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We certainly do. And now we need to do better, act better, and weigh our silences as much as our words.
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Ameena, I like your poem but is chocked about the bystander syndrome. Didn’t realise.
Can’t imagine that we can get this callous and powerless in ourselves.
If this is the truth it is sick. Very sick.
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The first time I heard it, I was shocked too. We, as a society, really need to do better.
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Rightly said Sir, if only…
thank you very much for your comment
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If only all of us had the courage to stand with the downtrodden.
However, sometimes retreat is the better part of valor. Living to fight another day, as it is said.
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