Pledge to be an Active Bystander

 This video demonstrates the Bystander Effect.

 

 

Bystander effect

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This article is about the psychological phenomenon. For the bystander effect in radiobiology, see Bystander effect (radiobiology).

The bystander effect or Genovese syndrome is a social psychological phenomenon that refers to cases where individuals do not offer any means of help in an emergency situation to the victim when other people are present. The probability of help has often appeared to be inversely related to the number of bystanders; in other words, the greater the number of bystanders, the less likely it is that any one of them will help. The mere presence of other bystanders greatly decreases intervention. In general, this is believed to happen because as the number of bystanders increases, any given bystander is less likely to notice the situation, interpret the incident as a problem, and less likely to assume responsibility for taking action.<sup>[1] Read more here.

 WHAT ARE SOME OF THE REASONS WE DON’T INTERRUPT ABUSE OR    VIOLENCE?</sup>

• ^{“It isn’t my problem.” - Violence is EVERYONE'S problem. We are all affected by abuse and violence in our communities.}
• 
  ^{“It isn’t going to change anything.” – Your action is going to help others see that they can take a stand against violence. It also shows the victim she or he is not alone.}
• 
  ^{“It may make things worse, or the abuser might turn on me.” - The point of being an active bystander is to help the situation calm down, not create more violence.}
• 
  ^{“Maybe I’m making a big deal out of nothing.” - Any kind of violence IS a big deal, even grabbing someone’s arm or yelling in their face; even calling someone names. If it seems wrong, it probably is.}
• 
  ^{“They might have started it or deserved it.” - No one chooses to be abused, and no one ever deserves to be abused.}
• 
  ^{“I’m not a ‘rat’.” - Being an active bystander does not mean you’re being a ‘rat’ or that you’re weak. It means you have zero tolerance for abuse and violence.}
• 
  ^{“No one else seems to care that this is happening.” - Many people want to see an end to abuse and violence, but are unsure of how or when to speak up.}  

^{It takes one person to take stand up and out of the crowd to intervene and prevent abuse and violence.  Don't expect anyone else will have the strength to do it.  It must be you!}

Research indicates that when presented with a need/call for help, people may be less likely to intervene with there are a lot of people around. They expect that someone else will handle the situation.

Is it your responsibility? Yes it is.

You may ask yourself a few questions:

Is it a problem or risky situation I should be aware of?

Is there an animal or someone that needs help?

Can I or others be part of the solution?

Other questions to ask yourself during the situation:

How can I keep myself safe?

What are my available options?

Are there others I may call upon for help?

What are the benefits/costs for taking action?

What is the cost of not acting? If you choose not to act in some way, how does that impact someone’s life?

Preventing abuse or an act of violence is a MORAL duty. A duty we should do because “it’s the right thing to do.” Sometimes it may help to think of others as a sister, brother or your family's companion animal – what would you do to protect your family?
 

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New Domestic Violence Shelter in North Carolina Opens Soon

Depending on where you live, up to 50% of women will stay in an abusive relationship because they have nowhere to go with their companion pets or live stock animals.  They fear for the safety of their pets if they were to leave them behind.  In many cases, their pets are also being abused, tortured or even killed.

wbtv.com in North Carolina, recently reported there's a new domestic violence shelter for battered women set to open soon in North Carolina.  It will replace a 33 year old cramped facility that only sustained 29 beds.

The new facility is 41k sq. ft., and has 80 beds available.  It features 2 bedroom 1 bath apartment style suites.  It's reported the shelter is designed to be extra bright, spacious and includes a dining hall, workout room, courtyard, and  playground.

The story  made no mention of whether or not it was designed to shelter companion animals, let alone live stock, or not.  So I called the number for United Family Services listed in the news report, 704.373.1604, only to reach a fax line.  I took the next step and looked up the number for United Family Services in North Carolina, 704.332.9034, and asked them if the new facility would shelter companion animals.  The woman who answered the phone didn't know.  I thought that was rather odd, but she gave me the direct number of the shelter, 704.332.2513, which I called and posed the same question;  does the new facility shelter companion animals?  The woman who answered the phone at the shelter didn't know either and she tells me to contact Jane Taylor.

At this point, it doesn't look very good for women who need a place to go with their pets, but I take the name of the woman she refers me to and I give her a call.  Jane tells me that due to economic issues they don't shelter companion animals on site.  They do, however, partner with local animal control and fosters to shelter family pets during the time a family stays at the shelter, often for months at a time.  There are times when residents at the domestic violence shelter need a little more time and in a circumstance like that, they rely on foster families to continue the care for the family animals.  I was so relieved to hear this news!

Jane stated it's been a very successful program for them.  The Animal Control Officers are available to them 24/7.  This program allows for entire families to flee as soon as is possible without worry for their pets.  Jane mentioned that just recently they did an intake on a family with a dog very late one night.  Without any delay, animal control responded at that late hour to take the family dog to safety!

It's outrageous for brand new facilities not to accommodate companion animals or at the very least partner with animal shelters and fosters like this shelter does, to care for the entire family, which includes pets.  The statistics stated above come directly from domestic violence shelters across the United States.  They are very aware of the need to Shelter Animals and Families Together.

For tips and resources on leaving an abusive relationship for men and women, world wide, click here.

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