I think it is the fault of the people who just walked by without noticing the lady. Also these people might of done this because that is what their parents would have done. I think that those people should have put themselves in the ladies shoes and thought twice before they just walked passed.
After reading this article I felt quite alot of sympathy for the distressed woman in this story. There isn't exaclty someone to blame, however if she was treated earlier her condition may not have been so bad. We also have to look at the reasons as to why she wasn't treated earlier. These things will have major contribution towards our opinions. In conclusion I would say that those who left her there were in the wrong. It is hard to say why they did this but they certainly were not in the position to just walk by.
I think that most people would of assumed the eldery lady was drunk/hungover. If I saw someone vommiting in the street I would assume that they were drunk. This problem could of been prevented if the lady knew that she was actually having a stroke. This means that there should be more education to people as to what the signs of a stroke, and other health issues, are. Unfortunately, in Australia our Aboriginal Australians are not treated equally. I believe that this is definetaly what caused no one to ask the lady if she needed assistance sooner. This problem again needs more education. Pin pointing the blame on somebody is near impossible, but if there were more education on these issues avaliable to the public this problem could of been avoided
I do not believe that it was soley the fault of anyone in particular, I do believe that many of the people that passed this woman, had different reasons for not stopping to assist her. Saying that, during the period of time that this woman was at the bus stop, about 4-5 hours, I find it difficult to comprehend that no-one even asked her if she was alright. Age, race and gender, should not enter the equation of whether or not to assist someone, who is clearly sick or distressed, I believe that assistance should be offered to anyone who finds themself in this predicament. Furthermore, the students who eventually, provided her with the assistance that she required, should be commended, on their compassion.
When I read this article I was really shocked with the complete lack of humanity and human kindness. It was poor and extremely uncaring of passers by to assume that this lady who was collapsed on the ground to be deemed to be anything other than drunk. Once she was treated medically and found not be drunk, one can only think that anyone of those people could have helped her. Which means that there was a good chance that her outcome could have been better.
I believe that this incident was not necessarily anyone's fault. I do believe that the people that had past the elderly woman without stopping are partly to blame. Prehaps, the reason why so many people walked past this woman is that they may have thought that she was drunk, or were to busy to get help. It is hard to believe that so many people who walked past the lady had no decency to take a few minutes to ask her if she was okay. I dont believe that this lady was just walked past because of her nationality. This story is sad to think that so many people could just ignore someone like that. However, the students that had came to her rescue eventually, should be applauded for their kind-heartedness and their consideration for the lady in need.
After reading this article, I think that the people who walked past this lady and ignored her are partly at fault. Maybe they had particular reasons not to go and help the woman but by even asking a simple, "Are you okay?" would have shown some courtesy. This article has shocked me by the ignorance of how some people acted and not helped the lady in need. Colour of skin, age or religion should not have to be judged upon when there is a person who needs some sort of medical attention immediately. The two students that came down to her rescue should be commended on their willingness to help and for showing such respect and dignity to the lady.
After reading this artile, I felt extremely sorry for this woman. People should have stopped and asked her if she was okay seeing the fact that she was considerebly old. I however would have probably walked past her thinking that at my age i probably couldn't do much to help and if I was in a rush then I probably would have kept going. Although waiting 5 hours is quite ridiculous and the fact that it was 2 Japanese students who asked her if she was okay is quite shocking. It is good to hear that she survived but the two students who found her and asked if she was okay should be honoured in someway.
Hi. Well firstly while reading this article I instantly blamed the fault on the people who ignored and walked past this elderly lady, however after thinking of what I would have done if I was put in this situation as well as reading some other comments, I agree that some would not approach the lady by mistakenly seeing her as a drunk and not wanting to help her for the sake of their own safety. So therefore I believe it's no ones fault. :)
I agree with Tori especially when it comes to the education of the basic signs of strokes and other illnesses. If the people who had walked passed knew some of the signs they may have had the courage to ask if she was alright. This would prevent the guessing of whether she was drunk. I believe that it wasn't just the fault of one person. The bus driver may of been able to assist her by driving her to the Nathan campus, but it also may be against the rules to drive people to non destinations. Also the people could have assisted her by giving her a hand or asking if she was alright, but I can understand the situation where some people are racist towards Aboriginee's and believing that she was drunk. Unfortunately, the lady wasn't helped for that long period of time, but the two Japanese girls should be congradulated for their compassion. Also this is just a comment, but the parable of the Good Samaritan is very, very similar.
At first while reading this article I thought no one was to blame, but as I kept reading it got more and more horrific. People may not have been helping because they were in a rush to get to classes, or to get home. But somebody could have at least asked 'are you okay?', it wouldn't have taken long to simply call an ambulance or have help sent to her. If she were to die, I would partly blame the public.
From reading this article, it is quite confronting to hear that ignorant civilians could turn their back on another human being; who was clearly in distress. Laying there, vulnerable and helpless for five hours, without one individual taking initiative, clearly demonstrates what principles and values people live by in modern times. The same principle applies to situations such as bullying; If you are an onlooker of unjust actions, not taking action makes you a significant part in the outcome. Therefore, everyone who witnessed this , is to blame. In addition to this, Im sure this woman's physical appearance impacted significantly upon the outcome. This is mainly due to RACISM and STEREOTYPING, two prevalent issues in a society obsessed with appearance and materialism. This particular article saddened me and showed me the sad reality our society is becoming. BYE :D
I think that there would be many people to blame for this incident, especially all of the people who walked past her and watched as she was suffering for many hours. However, one thing that stood out to me in this article was that her reasoning of why she had thought no one had helped her for so long was because she was an Aboriginal. I personally don't believe that this is the reason, because i don't think that in today's society people would watch a women suffering and not attend to her because she was an aboriginal. I think that she was trying to blame what happened to her on the fact she was aboriginal, but i think that she was partly to blame for what had happened to her, because she knew that she was feeling unwell, however she continued to go to university. Although, I am not saying what these other people did was right, the bus driver should have assisted her, and the people that were walking past should of at least called an ambulance (even if they didn't want to help her themselves). One thing i find interesting was that the people that had ended up helping her were Japanese, because Australia is meant to be known as a community that treat each other as equals and do not judge others for their religion/belief/skin colour/race, they are meant to be people who are willing to help out anyone in need of attendance, and willing to help their community. The government always talks about us working as a community to make this world a better place, but if this is happening still then I think a question everyone should ask themselves is what are we doing wrong today? However though, the Japanese are not Australian yet they were the ones in the end that acknowledged this woman that desperately needed help. Thankfully she didn't die, although if she were to, i think that everyone involved in the situation, whether it be the bus driver or the people walking past, they were all to blame for this incident that had occurred.
After reading this article I was horrified. It was the publics fault. The woman was very ill but not one person helped her until about 5-6 hours after the woman had become ill. People need to stop being stereotypical. People need to learn to set aside racial and cultural differences. If more people do this, the more likely the woman would have been assisted sooner.
I strongly agree with Emma, under these circumstances if the woman were to have unfortunately passed away, it would be difficult to pin-point the blame on a particular person. Truthfully,I would blame the public for their ignorance and selfishness when ignoring the elderly woman, especially in her weak and unfit state. I believe how some people view Aboriginals today may have been a contributing factor as to why they did not assist the woman earlier. Today Aboriginee's are still not viewed equally and are wrongly stereotyped, which may have lead to people assuming or questioning whether she was under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
The woman featured in this article is living proof that the warmhearted generosity in today's society is slowly deteriorating.Hundreds of passerbys ignored and left this poor, defenseless woman for dead.In hearing this story we feel inclined to ask, why? Why, out of hundreds, was there not one "Good Samaratin" to be found? The answer in my opinion, is quite confronting.The people of today's society are almost always too quick to judge, especially when it comes to those of indigenous descent.I believe that many of those selfish and cold hearted passersby did not proceed to assist the woman or even ask if she was okay because they saw that she was of indigenous descent and automatically presumed she was drunk. While there are a great number of the indigenous population who do abuse alcohol, we should not assume that all aborigines are drunk.We would not jump to such conclusions had it been someone of another race.Like Naima and Tori said,this woman may have been affected by a serious illness at the time and it is only fair to say that each and every one of those people who passed by and ignored this lady should be held fully responsible.To those who have posted that all those people may have had a reason to keep walking you are absolutely right. The reason is: THEY WERE AFRAID!!We have said "SORRY" to the indigenous but i feel this word falls flat if we as a country can not show full acceptance of the first culture that formed our nation.
I'd also like to add that the two japanese girls who rescued this poor lady from harm may have been ignorant to the fact that indigenous people are regularly "labelled" as drunk. They are however, to be commended for saving that woman's life as ironically, they showed the "TRUE AUSTRALIAN SPIRIT"
I am loving Emma's reply right now. It is not anyone's fault in particular, but if I was in that lady's position, I would have been disgusted with this society. It is evident that this generation in Australia is lacking generosity and respect for elderly people. I don't know if the people didn't help that Aboriginal lady because of racism, looks, age or some sort of stereotypical view, but GOOD ON YA JAPANIEEEES~
I MUST ADD, I WAS IN THE MIDDLE OF MY CHINESE NEW YEARS EVE PARTY, and rushed on the computer just to post this comment. >.>"
The decision as to whether or not, anyone is to be blamed for the occurrence of this incident is at first, quite apparent. Everyone who saw the lady, frail and clearly ill, yet failed to call an ambulance or even offer the slightest assistance is partly to blame. As a nation it is a disappointment to witness such ignorance and even egotism within the community of our so called ‘nationalistic’ country. Disregarding the gender, faith, or ethnicity of this woman, any true Aussie would help whole-heartedly and embrace the definition of our Australian spirit. It was extremely heartless of passers-by to neglect this senior citizen and should perhaps thought of the ramifications of their actions, whether her life was taken or whether she was burdened with the knowledge of indecent people. The fact that she had to wait for 4-5 hours for anyone to even consider that she needed help is also absolutely ludicrous. Whether they were aware that this woman was having a stroke or not, it is not too difficult to spare 2-3 minutes of your 24 hour day to save the life of a woman, who was in need of serious attention. Labelling aboriginals as alcoholics is just a stereotype that should not at all be pinpointed on a 63 year old woman. Even if this lady was seriously intoxicated, she was obviously in trouble and required serious aid. Though it cannot be blamed on any sole individual, the severity of the situation could have significantly lessened or even potentially prevented.
All these posts were all very insightful! Firstly, I haven't had the chance to read everyone's comments and opinions, so I apologize if I am just repeating what somebody else has already said. If you wanted a simple answer, it would be easy to say it was all the people who were walking past's fault. However I think we all know it's not merely those people, but our society as a whole. I have now read a few more posts, and well this is very annoying, because everything I am thinking has already been said! I very much agree with Hazel- very articulate response! Although this occurred nearly 5 years ago now, by the way I observe society today, the ignorant stereotyping that was demonstrated at that time- in my opinion- has not improved but unfortunately gotten even worse. What with discriminative advertisements directed at all sorts of races on facebook these days, people never stop and think about how offensive they really are, because it's only a "joke", that ironically enough, isn't funny. I think I have gotten a little side-tracked here, but my point is, I think our way of perceiving Indigenous or other people we aren't as familiar with, is going to perpetually get worse. In saying that, I don't necessarily think it CANNOT improve, I just think it WILL NOT improve. Alright so this probably hasn't made much sense, so sorry about that, but I am tired as I just got home from work and I burnt three of my fingers in the oven!!!
Although our contemporary Australian society is deemed to have come a long way in regards to antidiscrimination and the assistance of our community members, this situation distinctly emphasises our instinct to evade what is morally right and choose rather, to be ignorant of difficult, “unclean” circumstances which do not directly involve us so that our life may continue with ease and comfort. Regardless of the distinguishable aspects of her individuality, our Australian community should have found pride in sustaining the ‘true Aussie nature’ through aiding her appropriately. The refusal of providing assistance to a native Australian lady, of a significant age, in obvious need of medical attention, on such a large scale, should be perceived as horrific to the Australian populace and authorities. While the people who sought to remain oblivious to the lady’s circumstances didn’t actually commit any legal offence, the fact that they declined their opportunity to assist, categorically puts them at fault. As others have stated, no individual is solely to blame, however the blame is divided among each of them. The proposal that the passer-bys categorised the lady as drunk does not significantly interfere with the result of the posed situation as it is has been described clearly in the Transcript that it was very plain the lady required immediate medical attention. Additionally, one would soon discover the severity of her condition through a brief inspection, which evidently did not occur. It makes absolutely no difference to the reasoning of the passer-bys’ ignorance if the lady was to die. It would reveal the equivalent horrifying behaviour, although might generate an increased amount guilt and realisation, which should not be the case.
After reading the article I felt disgusted that people in our society today would treat someone like that based on their race and appearance. This woman was clearly ill and frail yet no one bothered to come to her aid because she was indigenous. In my opinion this story is sort of like 'the good Samaritan' in how people walked past and neglected her because of her appearance until someone finally came to her rescue. If she had passed away I don't believe you can point at one specific person and accuse them of her murder however society would be to blame for her death. A person neglecting to assist someone who is clearly in need of medical attention for 4-5 hours is disgraceful despite their race. I think that this incident has set an important lesson that all people need to learn. It should not matter who someone is, you should help them if they look like they are in need. If people would start looking out for each other as a community then things like this would happen! On a lighter note, the two students who did have the compassion and empathy for the woman should be congratulated.
Okay, I had a quick read girls. It seems that we have a spectrum of opinions. Is it society's fault for implanting racial stereotypes that seem to guide our day to day decisions? Are the people who walked past without assisting the key culprits? Is it the bus drivers fault for not driving the woman to the appropriate campus?
There are countless people we can blame, I wonder if at all we can blame ourselves? If we blame society aren't we a part of it? Do we not contribute to the formation of its reigning ideologies? Even if it is by our silence, perhaps we are culpable to a certain degree? Just a thought...
This article makes me feel saddened and ashamed that our society still carries these prejudices. This woman was treated like she was invisible because she was indigenous. People in our society still believe they are better than indigenous people because they are white but they conveniently forget that the indigenous people were living in this country long before the english discovered it. Basicly, the beliefs of our society are more to blame than any one person. A stereotypical belief of society is that people believe that most indigenous people are usually either drunk or drugged. Therefore, most of the people who walked past the old woman probably assumed that she was simply drunk/drugged. These beliefs may well have resulted in the old woman's death if it weren't for the two japanese students who had enough compassion to stop and help. Our society must let go of these beliefs or one day they might cause someone's death.
These beliefs and prejudices will never be changed unless we are willing to at least try to understand and eventually admit that we could have been wrong.
This woman was clearly sick and needed help and no one seemed to care. To me I would blame the public. This is because a 62 year old woman was throwing up and struggling to stand up and clearly needed help, but no one seemed to notice or care, this was proberly due too many people just thinking she was drunk. But if you had any common sense you would at least stop and ask if she is alright because if this was you I'm sure you would want soemone to at least stop and at least ask if your okay.
I deleted my last name from that particular post, because I know we're not supposed to share those details now, but at least I managed to screen print it whilst my surname appeared after! (that didnt really make sense but i shall show you all on monday)
Hello hello, 
I think it is the fault of the people who just walked by without noticing the lady. Also these people might of done this because that is what their parents would have done. I think that those people should have put themselves in the ladies shoes and thought twice before they just walked passed.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading this article I felt quite alot of sympathy for the distressed woman in this story. There isn't exaclty someone to blame, however if she was treated earlier her condition may not have been so bad. We also have to look at the reasons as to why she wasn't treated earlier. These things will have major contribution towards our opinions. In conclusion I would say that those who left her there were in the wrong. It is hard to say why they did this but they certainly were not in the position to just walk by.
ReplyDeleteI think that most people would of assumed the eldery lady was drunk/hungover. If I saw someone vommiting in the street I would assume that they were drunk. This problem could of been prevented if the lady knew that she was actually having a stroke. This means that there should be more education to people as to what the signs of a stroke, and other health issues, are. Unfortunately, in Australia our Aboriginal Australians are not treated equally. I believe that this is definetaly what caused no one to ask the lady if she needed assistance sooner. This problem again needs more education. Pin pointing the blame on somebody is near impossible, but if there were more education on these issues avaliable to the public this problem could of been avoided
ReplyDeleteI do not believe that it was soley the fault of anyone in particular, I do believe that many of the people that passed this woman, had different reasons for not stopping to assist her. Saying that, during the period of time that this woman was at the bus stop, about 4-5 hours, I find it difficult to comprehend that no-one even asked her if she was alright. Age, race and gender, should not enter the equation of whether or not to assist someone, who is clearly sick or distressed, I believe that assistance should be offered to anyone who finds themself in this predicament. Furthermore, the students who eventually, provided her with the assistance that she required, should be commended, on their compassion.
ReplyDeleteWhen I read this article I was really shocked with the complete lack of humanity and human kindness. It was poor and extremely uncaring of passers by to assume that this lady who was collapsed on the ground to be deemed to be anything other than drunk. Once she was treated medically and found not be drunk, one can only think that anyone of those people could have helped her. Which means that there was a good chance that her outcome could have been better.
ReplyDeleteI believe that this incident was not necessarily anyone's fault. I do believe that the people that had past the elderly woman without stopping are partly to blame. Prehaps, the reason why so many people walked past this woman is that they may have thought that she was drunk, or were to busy to get help. It is hard to believe that so many people who walked past the lady had no decency to take a few minutes to ask her if she was okay. I dont believe that this lady was just walked past because of her nationality. This story is sad to think that so many people could just ignore someone like that. However, the students that had came to her rescue eventually, should be applauded for their kind-heartedness and their consideration for the lady in need.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading this article, I think that the people who walked past this lady and ignored her are partly at fault. Maybe they had particular reasons not to go and help the woman but by even asking a simple, "Are you okay?" would have shown some courtesy. This article has shocked me by the ignorance of how some people acted and not helped the lady in need. Colour of skin, age or religion should not have to be judged upon when there is a person who needs some sort of medical attention immediately. The two students that came down to her rescue should be commended on their willingness to help and for showing such respect and dignity to the lady.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading this artile, I felt extremely sorry for this woman. People should have stopped and asked her if she was okay seeing the fact that she was considerebly old. I however would have probably walked past her thinking that at my age i probably couldn't do much to help and if I was in a rush then I probably would have kept going. Although waiting 5 hours is quite ridiculous and the fact that it was 2 Japanese students who asked her if she was okay is quite shocking. It is good to hear that she survived but the two students who found her and asked if she was okay should be honoured in someway.
ReplyDeleteInteresting comments ladies, keep them coming!
ReplyDeleteHi. Well firstly while reading this article I instantly blamed the fault on the people who ignored and walked past this elderly lady, however after thinking of what I would have done if I was put in this situation as well as reading some other comments, I agree that some would not approach the lady by mistakenly seeing her as a drunk and not wanting to help her for the sake of their own safety. So therefore I believe it's no ones fault. :)
ReplyDeleteI agree with Tori especially when it comes to the education of the basic signs of strokes and other illnesses. If the people who had walked passed knew some of the signs they may have had the courage to ask if she was alright. This would prevent the guessing of whether she was drunk.
ReplyDeleteI believe that it wasn't just the fault of one person. The bus driver may of been able to assist her by driving her to the Nathan campus, but it also may be against the rules to drive people to non destinations. Also the people could have assisted her by giving her a hand or asking if she was alright, but I can understand the situation where some people are racist towards Aboriginee's and believing that she was drunk. Unfortunately, the lady wasn't helped for that long period of time, but the two Japanese girls should be congradulated for their compassion.
Also this is just a comment, but the parable of the Good Samaritan is very, very similar.
At first while reading this article I thought no one was to blame, but as I kept reading it got more and more horrific. People may not have been helping because they were in a rush to get to classes, or to get home. But somebody could have at least asked 'are you okay?', it wouldn't have taken long to simply call an ambulance or have help sent to her. If she were to die, I would partly blame the public.
ReplyDeleteI agree with everyone!
ReplyDeleteHI EVERYONE :D
ReplyDeleteFrom reading this article, it is quite confronting to hear that ignorant civilians could turn their back on another human being; who was clearly in distress. Laying there, vulnerable and helpless for five hours, without one individual taking initiative, clearly demonstrates what principles and values people live by in modern times. The same principle applies to situations such as bullying; If you are an onlooker of unjust actions, not taking action makes you a significant part in the outcome. Therefore, everyone who witnessed this , is to blame. In addition to this, Im sure this woman's physical appearance impacted significantly upon the outcome. This is mainly due to RACISM and STEREOTYPING, two prevalent issues in a society obsessed with appearance and materialism. This particular article saddened me and showed me the sad reality our society is becoming.
BYE :D
I think that there would be many people to blame for this incident, especially all of the people who walked past her and watched as she was suffering for many hours. However, one thing that stood out to me in this article was that her reasoning of why she had thought no one had helped her for so long was because she was an Aboriginal. I personally don't believe that this is the reason, because i don't think that in today's society people would watch a women suffering and not attend to her because she was an aboriginal. I think that she was trying to blame what happened to her on the fact she was aboriginal, but i think that she was partly to blame for what had happened to her, because she knew that she was feeling unwell, however she continued to go to university. Although, I am not saying what these other people did was right, the bus driver should have assisted her, and the people that were walking past should of at least called an ambulance (even if they didn't want to help her themselves). One thing i find interesting was that the people that had ended up helping her were Japanese, because Australia is meant to be known as a community that treat each other as equals and do not judge others for their religion/belief/skin colour/race, they are meant to be people who are willing to help out anyone in need of attendance, and willing to help their community. The government always talks about us working as a community to make this world a better place, but if this is happening still then I think a question everyone should ask themselves is what are we doing wrong today? However though, the Japanese are not Australian yet they were the ones in the end that acknowledged this woman that desperately needed help. Thankfully she didn't die, although if she were to, i think that everyone involved in the situation, whether it be the bus driver or the people walking past, they were all to blame for this incident that had occurred.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading this article I was horrified. It was the publics fault. The woman was very ill but not one person helped her until about 5-6 hours after the woman had become ill. People need to stop being stereotypical. People need to learn to set aside racial and cultural differences. If more people do this, the more likely the woman would have been assisted sooner.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Isla about agreeing with everyone :)
ReplyDeletehahaa me too :)
ReplyDeleteI strongly agree with Emma, under these circumstances if the woman were to have unfortunately passed away, it would be difficult to pin-point the blame on a particular person. Truthfully,I would blame the public for their ignorance and selfishness when ignoring the elderly woman, especially in her weak and unfit state. I believe how some people view Aboriginals today may have been a contributing factor as to why they did not assist the woman earlier. Today Aboriginee's are still not viewed equally and are wrongly stereotyped, which may have lead to people assuming or questioning whether she was under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
ReplyDeleteThe woman featured in this article is living proof that the warmhearted generosity in today's society is slowly deteriorating.Hundreds of passerbys ignored and left this poor, defenseless woman for dead.In hearing this story we feel inclined to ask, why?
ReplyDeleteWhy, out of hundreds, was there not one
"Good Samaratin" to be found? The answer in my opinion, is quite confronting.The people of today's society are almost always too quick to judge, especially when it comes to those of indigenous descent.I believe that many of those selfish and cold hearted passersby did not proceed to assist the woman or even ask if she was okay because they saw that she was of indigenous descent and automatically presumed she was drunk. While there are a great number of the indigenous population who do abuse alcohol, we should not assume that all aborigines are drunk.We would not jump to such conclusions had it been someone of another race.Like Naima and Tori said,this woman may have been affected by a serious illness at the time and it is only fair to say that each and every one of those people who passed by and ignored this lady should be held fully responsible.To those who have posted that all those people may have had a reason to keep walking you are absolutely right. The reason is: THEY WERE AFRAID!!We have said "SORRY" to the indigenous but i feel this word falls flat if we as a country can not show full acceptance of the first culture that formed our nation.
I'd also like to add that the two japanese girls who rescued this poor lady from harm may have been ignorant to the fact that indigenous people are regularly "labelled" as drunk. They are however, to be commended for saving that woman's life as ironically, they showed the "TRUE AUSTRALIAN SPIRIT"
ReplyDeleteI couldn't ( and didn't hahahaha) explain it better myself kiara :) i agree- generosity is deteriorating
ReplyDeleteI am loving Emma's reply right now. It is not anyone's fault in particular, but if I was in that lady's position, I would have been disgusted with this society. It is evident that this generation in Australia is lacking generosity and respect for elderly people. I don't know if the people didn't help that Aboriginal lady because of racism, looks, age or some sort of stereotypical view, but GOOD ON YA JAPANIEEEES~
ReplyDeleteI MUST ADD, I WAS IN THE MIDDLE OF MY CHINESE NEW YEARS EVE PARTY, and rushed on the computer just to post this comment. >.>"
The decision as to whether or not, anyone is to be blamed for the occurrence of this incident is at first, quite apparent. Everyone who saw the lady, frail and clearly ill, yet failed to call an ambulance or even offer the slightest assistance is partly to blame. As a nation it is a disappointment to witness such ignorance and even egotism within the community of our so called ‘nationalistic’ country. Disregarding the gender, faith, or ethnicity of this woman, any true Aussie would help whole-heartedly and embrace the definition of our Australian spirit. It was extremely heartless of passers-by to neglect this senior citizen and should perhaps thought of the ramifications of their actions, whether her life was taken or whether she was burdened with the knowledge of indecent people. The fact that she had to wait for 4-5 hours for anyone to even consider that she needed help is also absolutely ludicrous. Whether they were aware that this woman was having a stroke or not, it is not too difficult to spare 2-3 minutes of your 24 hour day to save the life of a woman, who was in need of serious attention. Labelling aboriginals as alcoholics is just a stereotype that should not at all be pinpointed on a 63 year old woman. Even if this lady was seriously intoxicated, she was obviously in trouble and required serious aid. Though it cannot be blamed on any sole individual, the severity of the situation could have significantly lessened or even potentially prevented.
ReplyDeletegood job hazel mountain :D i agree
ReplyDeletePRO :):)
ReplyDeleteAll these posts were all very insightful! Firstly, I haven't had the chance to read everyone's comments and opinions, so I apologize if I am just repeating what somebody else has already said.
ReplyDeleteIf you wanted a simple answer, it would be easy to say it was all the people who were walking past's fault. However I think we all know it's not merely those people, but our society as a whole. I have now read a few more posts, and well this is very annoying, because everything I am thinking has already been said! I very much agree with Hazel- very articulate response!
Although this occurred nearly 5 years ago now, by the way I observe society today, the ignorant stereotyping that was demonstrated at that time- in my opinion- has not improved but unfortunately gotten even worse. What with discriminative advertisements directed at all sorts of races on facebook these days, people never stop and think about how offensive they really are, because it's only a "joke", that ironically enough, isn't funny. I think I have gotten a little side-tracked here, but my point is, I think our way of perceiving Indigenous or other people we aren't as familiar with, is going to perpetually get worse. In saying that, I don't necessarily think it CANNOT improve, I just think it WILL NOT improve. Alright so this probably hasn't made much sense, so sorry about that, but I am tired as I just got home from work and I burnt three of my fingers in the oven!!!
Although our contemporary Australian society is deemed to have come a long way in regards to antidiscrimination and the assistance of our community members, this situation distinctly emphasises our instinct to evade what is morally right and choose rather, to be ignorant of difficult, “unclean” circumstances which do not directly involve us so that our life may continue with ease and comfort. Regardless of the distinguishable aspects of her individuality, our Australian community should have found pride in sustaining the ‘true Aussie nature’ through aiding her appropriately. The refusal of providing assistance to a native Australian lady, of a significant age, in obvious need of medical attention, on such a large scale, should be perceived as horrific to the Australian populace and authorities. While the people who sought to remain oblivious to the lady’s circumstances didn’t actually commit any legal offence, the fact that they declined their opportunity to assist, categorically puts them at fault. As others have stated, no individual is solely to blame, however the blame is divided among each of them. The proposal that the passer-bys categorised the lady as drunk does not significantly interfere with the result of the posed situation as it is has been described clearly in the Transcript that it was very plain the lady required immediate medical attention. Additionally, one would soon discover the severity of her condition through a brief inspection, which evidently did not occur.
ReplyDeleteIt makes absolutely no difference to the reasoning of the passer-bys’ ignorance if the lady was to die. It would reveal the equivalent horrifying behaviour, although might generate an increased amount guilt and realisation, which should not be the case.
By the way, my name was a joke... not sure if some of you can understand sarcasm via the internet.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading the article I felt disgusted that people in our society today would treat someone like that based on their race and appearance. This woman was clearly ill and frail yet no one bothered to come to her aid because she was indigenous. In my opinion this story is sort of like 'the good Samaritan' in how people walked past and neglected her because of her appearance until someone finally came to her rescue. If she had passed away I don't believe you can point at one specific person and accuse them of her murder however society would be to blame for her death. A person neglecting to assist someone who is clearly in need of medical attention for 4-5 hours is disgraceful despite their race. I think that this incident has set an important lesson that all people need to learn. It should not matter who someone is, you should help them if they look like they are in need. If people would start looking out for each other as a community then things like this would happen! On a lighter note, the two students who did have the compassion and empathy for the woman should be congratulated.
ReplyDeleteoops i said 'would happen' when i meant it 'wouldn't happen'. sorry my mistake :o
ReplyDeleteGirls remember, no last names!
ReplyDeleteOkay, I had a quick read girls. It seems that we have a spectrum of opinions. Is it society's fault for implanting racial stereotypes that seem to guide our day to day decisions? Are the people who walked past without assisting the key culprits? Is it the bus drivers fault for not driving the woman to the appropriate campus?
ReplyDeleteThere are countless people we can blame, I wonder if at all we can blame ourselves? If we blame society aren't we a part of it? Do we not contribute to the formation of its reigning ideologies? Even if it is by our silence, perhaps we are culpable to a certain degree? Just a thought...
This article makes me feel saddened and ashamed that our society still carries these prejudices. This woman was treated like she was invisible because she was indigenous. People in our society still believe they are better than indigenous people because they are white but they conveniently forget that the indigenous people were living in this country long before the english discovered it. Basicly, the beliefs of our society are more to blame than any one person. A stereotypical belief of society is that people believe that most indigenous people are usually either drunk or drugged. Therefore, most of the people who walked past the old woman probably assumed that she was simply drunk/drugged. These beliefs may well have resulted in the old woman's death if it weren't for the two japanese students who had enough compassion to stop and help. Our society must let go of these beliefs or one day they might cause someone's death.
ReplyDeleteThese beliefs and prejudices will never be changed unless we are willing to at least try to understand and eventually admit that we could have been wrong.
ReplyDeleteC is for Cookie, cookie is for me! omnomnom!
ReplyDeleteThis woman was clearly sick and needed help and no one seemed to care. To me I would blame the public. This is because a 62 year old woman was throwing up and struggling to stand up and clearly needed help, but no one seemed to notice or care, this was proberly due too many people just thinking she was drunk. But if you had any common sense you would at least stop and ask if she is alright because if this was you I'm sure you would want soemone to at least stop and at least ask if your okay.
ReplyDeleteThanks Grace! Oh and who is the cookie monster?
ReplyDeleteThis comment is merely to prove that my last name automatically comes up when I want to post something.
ReplyDeleteI deleted my last name from that particular post, because I know we're not supposed to share those details now, but at least I managed to screen print it whilst my surname appeared after! (that didnt really make sense but i shall show you all on monday)
ReplyDeleteThanks Kat. I'll have to somehow remove that automatic function...
ReplyDeletehi
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