Justice and Snitching

We had our life skill group at my Starbucks last night and talked about justice and why being a snitch is considered such a bad thing in today’s world. I had talked briefly before about the impact of the Boston Bombing and whether most people ran to help or ran to escape from helping. My hope is writing and talking about this is to better highlight our need to help the hurting and not be those who hurt those who need help in life circumstances. The reality is that being a bully has become a popular past time of too many.

One of our teens was quick to share a story about how his older brother bullied him when he was 5 years old. His big brother had smashed a cockroach and then proceeded to pick him up and put his face on it. It was clear from the loud ahhh that this was gross from the group’s reaction that everyone agreed that this was truly a horrible thing to do. This teen was obviously impacted and scarred from this bullying experience. The real discussion focused more on what is real justice – coming to the aid of those who can’t help themselves who have been wronged. Our topics went from taking advantage of seniors, racism, sexism and even immigration issues of illegals being targeted.

I had one of our college interns, who is from Philadelphia, talk about how common it would be to have someone attacked in public during daylight and have a crowd gather and not do anything. Most when asked if they would dial 911 or step up and scream clearly thought that this was what everyone should do. Yet, the reality is that everyone thinks that somebody else is going to call 911, step up to help but instead runs in the opposite direction. It is too easy to close your window, drive by the accident or look the other way when something bad is happening.

I know that the real topic amongst teens is that they don’t want to snitch because someone might choose to retaliate against them and they could get hurt for being the rescuer. I turned the tables on them and asked what would it be like if you were the one being attacked, made fun of, being discriminated against or being bullied on FB? I have to believe that no one wants to be attacked physically or even more so verbally. One of our adult helpers was quick to say that it was more likely to have someone gossip or post something awful on Facebook that wasn’t true and have a bunch of friends that believe what was posted.

I know that self-sacrifice and taking risks are not popular in today’s society, especially among the youth culture. The point, which is a tough one is that sometimes we have to stand up and make choices that aren’t popular to help the person who has been left out, marginalized or has real life issues. Doing what’s right isn’t always popular or easy but what we should do. I know that most have heard the stories now of the individuals who ran back to help those injured by the Boston Bombers. What these people saw will leave an indelible image on their minds for the rest of their lives. The reality is that many would more would have died or been injured even more severely if these people had chosen to run in the opposite direction.

Yeah, I think Jesus would be a snitch but in a different way. He would choose to be someone who helps those who have been hurt and choose to confront those who are the bullies in today’s society. So I asked the question, “Are you the helper or the hurter?”