With all of the talks being given to students about bullying, it is interesting to note that similar talks are given to adults in terms of domestic violence.
On Oct. 4, a talk of this nature was given in Shouvlin 105 as a part of the Global Education series. In a quiet room with plenty of snacks, townspeople, professors and students gathered to discuss the bystander effect during many different forms of violence.
The program’s goal is to help people find the ability to step up when they know that something may not be right.
In order to prove the bystander theory, speakers Winkie Mitchell, Jonna Johnson and Laura Baxter played a video that showed a child screaming that they were being kidnapped is less likely to receive help than one might expect.
“There isn’t an agency that can do it alone; law enforcement can’t do it alone,” said Baxter, while discussing the need for bystander awareness and responsibility.
The event also gave attendees the opportunity to try out situations in the form of role playing, as well as vent about situations that they had been put in, whether they were the target, the bystander or even the instigators themselves.
Baxter reminded the room: “None of us are saying ‘Yes! I want a violent community!’”
