Sharing is not caring
ONE DAY last week, while checking my WhatsApp messages, I came across a video sent to me by a friend. In the clip, a woman is seen arguing with a schoolgirl at a gas station in Half-Way Tree.
The girl pushes her away, she proceeds to rain blows on the girl, and a fight ensues. Another schoolgirl begins to hit the woman, but yet another schoolgirl, wearing the same school uniform as the other girls, attacks her, and a second fight ensues. The woman continues to hit and kick the schoolgirl in the first fight. She then realises that the other skirmish is in progress, runs over to the other two girls and leaps into that fight, taking on one of the youngsters.
During the altercation, a man, off camera, possibly the person filming the video, can be heard repeatedly shouting “b**bocl**t”, reaching a crescendo when the woman j umped on t he schoolgirl and initiated a third fight. Eventually, some onlookers intervene and part the woman and the girl she was fighting.
The video was disturbing to watch, but what disturbed me, even more, was that two laughing emojis were affixed at the top of the video, not by the person who sent it to me, but by either its creator or someone who saw it and found it funny.
We are at a very low point in this country. Our level of violence is remarkably high, and there are no signs that the horrific situation is abating. But, apart from the violence, also of concern is the callousness and lack of compassion and empathy we display. This is evident from the trend of taking out our cell phones and recording assaults and accident scenes, instead of intervening or offering assistance. In the video described above, the woman and the girls were unarmed. The person recording the video was in proximity to the belligerents in the first scuffle, watched the woman pummel the girl into submission, and merely recorded the incident, making no attempt to intervene.
Documenting disturbing incidents may have some value. I get that. Videos can provide vital evidence in cases where accidents occur and where crimes have been committed. I also understand that in some instances, where weapons such as firearms, rocks, knives or other sharp implements are involved, intervening may place you in harm’s way or even lead to your demise. But too often, people stand by, and their primary instinct is to record and share, hoping to garner multiple views and ‘likes’. For instance, I was recently informed of a video of an accident scene where a man was trapped in a vehicle and was banging on the window of the automobile, trying to escape. While this was taking place, someone recorded the event, taking no steps to assist him.
PROTECT OUR CHILDREN
One of our first instincts should be to protect our children, but we fail miserably in that department. Recently, I saw a viral video of a group of women and girls assaulting a teenage girl; they shoved, punched, kicked and dragged her, and left her lying unconscious and bleeding from her head in the street. There was another of a woman, allegedly the mother of the child, repeatedly stomping on a girl’s neck as she lay on the ground. In both cases, the people recording the incidents did nothing to stop the assaults, and in both instances, the victims ended up in hospital. I also saw a video of a schoolboy and a schoolgirl kissing and caressing in a classroom. The video was posted on Instagram, a public social media site. Why share this? Why expose minors? What is the point of sharing this publicly?
Our insensitivity is astounding. Recently, I saw another video, this one of a foreigner at one of our airports experiencing a mental breakdown. The woman undressed herself to the point where she was only wearing a bra, as airport personnel attempted to restrain her. While the struggle was ensuing, laughter could be heard in the background. What is funny about an embarrassing mental health episode? The video went viral, and I wonder how people sharing it would feel if it were their mother, spouse, sister, daughter, or other loved one. Or themselves. The same goes for people who share videos and photographs of murder scenes and sites of road traffic and other accidents where dead and dismembered bodies are present. Do they think about how family members would feel if they saw the footage of their loved ones being shared with all and sundry?
The propensity to observe trauma without trying to assist and to share videos of traumatic incidents indiscriminately is not confined to Jamaica. However, it has taken root in our culture and is troubling. We are raising a generation of youngsters who find this behaviour appropriate and derive entertainment from viewing the misfortunes and misery of others. Those of us who know better need to educate others, especially our youngsters, about the principles of compassion and empathy, and explain how this culture of sharing can hurt others.
“The propensity to observe trauma without trying to assist and to share videos of traumatic incidents indiscriminately is not confined to Jamaica. However, it has taken root in our culture and is troubling. We are raising a generation of youngsters who find this behaviour appropriate and derive entertainment from viewing the misfortunes and misery of others.”