Fatal indifference
By Gayle S. Fixler
According to a Talmudic saying, “Whoever saves one life saves the world entire.” And yet, when a Good Samaritan in obvious distress needed life-saving intervention, his life was not considered worthy.
Such is the case of Hugo Alfredo Tale-Yax, a 31-year-old homeless man who on April 18, 2010 was fatally wounded after coming to the rescue of a woman who was attacked by a knife-wielding man on a street in the Jamaica section of Queens, NY.
Mr. Tale-Yax did not know the woman he saved but he most likely did not hesitate before rushing to her aid. He was subsequently, repeatedly stabbed by the woman’s attacker. But despite his wounds, briefly chased the assailant and then fell to the ground where he later died from his injuries.
A surveillance video from a building adjacent to the one in front of which the attack took place is chilling. We watch riveted, waiting for someone to come to Mr. Tale-Yax’s aid. No one does until 90 minutes after the attack, when firefighters responded to a belated 911 call reporting a man lying on the ground, according to media reports.
Reportedly, as many as 25 pedestrians passed the stricken man after he collapsed. Some gawked and continued on. One bystander is seen shaking and then turning Mr. Tale-Yax’s body over, revealing pools of blood. That man then walked away. Others just sidestepped the unconscious Guatemalan immigrant. One man took a cell phone photo of Mr. Tale-Yax, ironically the same phone with which he could have made a 911 call. Apparently no one considered Mr. Tale-Yax worth helping and he was left to die unattended and alone.
The failure to intervene, a behavior known as the Bystander Effect, refers to situations in which individuals do not offer assistance in an emergency situation, particularly when others are present.
An important component of this social phenomenon is social influence—the need to behave in correct and socially acceptable ways. When bystanders fail to react, others follow suit, interpreting inaction as a sign that a response is inappropriate or unnecessary. Unfortunately, this form of peer pressure can supersede the importance of rendering aid to someone in need.
The concept of “diffusion of responsibility” is also a key element of the Bystander Effect. When with other observers, individuals do not feel obligated to intervene because the responsibility to do so is assumed to be shared by all who are present. Consequently, confusion about who should and will help becomes an obstacle to intervention.
In Mr. Tale-Yax’s case however, the attack took place shortly after 5:30 a.m., long before large numbers of people congregated, so perhaps this was just a painful example of the disregard for human life or a fear-based reluctance to get involved.
However explained, it is not justifiable. The failure to respond is inexcusable, shameful and heart wrenching. And although this incident has fanned outrage and discussion about morality, empathy and bystander obligation, it is not an isolated episode and most likely will recur when Mr. Tale-Yax’s heroics are forgotten.
Predictably, Mr. Tale-Yax’s death brings to mind the most notorious case of bystander indifference—the 1964 murder of Queens resident Kitty Genovese. The 29-year-old was stabbed and then raped while dying as her neighbors were reportedly unresponsive.
Since then, a number of similar episodes have occurred: Just two years ago, on May 30, 2008, 78-year-old Angel Arce Torres was crossing a Hartford, CT street when he was critically injured in a hit and run accident involving two wrong-way drivers. Left paralyzed, mute and unable to breathe on his own, Mr. Torres died just short of a year later, on May 11, 2009 after family members removed him from life support. This disgraceful incident was also caught on a surveillance tape that recorded spectators gathering on a sidewalk, cars veering around Mr. Torres without stopping, and a motor scooter rider circling the victim, who lay in the middle of the street, before driving away.
If a bystander does not want to get involved—understandable in some circumstances— anonymous assistance in the way of a call for help, could and should be made. Is a human life – even that of a homeless man like Mr. Tale-Yax—worth so little that it warrants only a quick snapshot? Are we so self-absorbed and void of empathy that a human being in crisis becomes a tourist attraction or spectator sport from which we walk away? Is it for passersby to decide who deserves assistance and who does not?
Like many states, New York does not have a law regulating bystander or Good Samaritan obligation. Such a law might deter bystanders— those who would render assistance—for fear of a law suit, accusations of negligence and other legal complications. But do we really need a law to regulate our moral obligation in a life or death situation?
Mr. Tale-Yax was an anonymous homeless man when he ran to the aid of a total stranger. He was apparently not worth helping as he lay mortally wounded on 144th Street near 88th Road in Queens. But after a violent and senseless death, this down-and-out man who did the right thing is lauded as a hero—a man who finally has a name.
-Gayle S. Fixler is a Washington, DC area freelance writer.
