Recently there has been a ton of buzz on the internet regarding homeless people. I have seen many “RAK nominations” (Random Acts of Kindness) where people go out and do something nice for people that are less fortunate. They are followed around with a camera or have one hidden to show off their good behaviour and post it to youtube. The fact that they are doing nice things for others who are less fortunate than themselves is great. If you need the camera to work up the courage then it is whatever because in the end it is being generous and helping others in need.
Other things I see on the internet are just disappointing. I don’t know how many people have seen this trend, but it happened to be spam that popped up on my Facebook labeled “This New Selfie Trend is Disgusting!” Curious I clicked on it and there were 9 photos that really left me speechless. With text reading “Shirtless Homeless Bum Selfie” “Quick selfie with a homeless guy sleeping in the lobby” And the pictures themselves. Smiling, thumbs up, exploiting and harassing these individuals. It absolutely boggles my mind to where people get this sense of higher self worth over others.
My friend Lane Sentes had a very strong Facebook post a couple weeks ago that he linked with a video of a homeless man receiving $1000. I took a few quotes from his post, the whole post was powerful but these quotes are what really stood out to me.
“Not everybody chooses, or wants to be homeless, and this guys gratitude afterwards made me tear up a bit. And it's not cause I feel sorry for him, but because it restored some faith in humanity for him; as he pointed out that no one has ever done something this significant for him in his life.”
“We shouldn't just label people as homeless or "they're too lazy, or inadequate"... rather have some understanding as to why they may be homeless: He could have went through some serious hardships that none of us even know the slightest bit about, (or perhaps he realizes how corrupt our society has gotten, and has lost hope)”
“I just wish we'd all come together in solidarity and help one another out, or try to understand one another instead of tossing out labels”
I then viewed a video of a youtuber by the fouseyTube who posted a youtube video labeled “THE HOMELESS CHILD EXPERIMENT!” This particular youtuber is known for pulling off pranks in society and seeing how people react so this being a more serious title I watched it out of curiosity. People walking by and looking at this child’s sign and not helping this young boy who is posing as homeless. The part that got me was when the little boy was made to feel bad from a citizen on the street and as they are walking away fousey asks him, “Is there anything you want to say?” The little boy responds, “Just what happened to this world?” The reaction on camera from fousey was the same reaction that I had which was speechless. Here is this young boy who at such a young age can already identify with a crumbling society and it is heart breaking.
This is an emotional blog post about real world issues but also I hope a blog post to get people thinking about being decent human beings to each other. There is one Earth that we all share, why not be allies rather than enemies. All the troubles in the world, all the problems are too much to handle. When you look internationally, nationally, and even in your own backyard. The hate is everywhere and my question is why? I have the same wish that Lane does which is, “I just wish we'd all come together in solidarity and help one another out, or try to understand one another.” The challenge now is to go out and be a better person in society. If it takes a “RAK nomination” to do that then I nominate all of you who are reading this. "Be the change you want to see in the world." -Gandhi
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This is a really interesting post... I have also questioned the same concept and have wondered what exactly it is that keeps pushing the world to be less and less kind. There was a time when if someone had gotten a flat tire- instantly the next person following the pull over and help. Where did this sort of mindset go? Is it that these concepts are not being taught to today''s youth or is it a much deeper problem? Great post to initiate this kind of thinking!
ReplyDeleteI also checked out the "homeless child experiment". This video really got me thinking about poverty and the different ways it can look. Homelessness and poverty is most likely not the first thing one thinks of when thinking of a developed country such as Canada. In fact, it's probably not even in the top ten. If someone asks what area comes to mind when I say the word "poor", it is quite probable that countries in Africa would be amongst the most common answers. This does not mean poverty does not exist in Canada. People get caught up in their lives of luxury and forget that their are those who are not so fortunate just down the street. Of course, it is not near as visible in Canada (thinking of slums and hinterlands) but nonetheless, still a very present issue.
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