What Happened in Richmond, CA: Anomaly or Symptom?

The recent gang rape of a 15 year old girl outside a school dance in Richmond, CA would be an ugly incident all by itself. What makes it even uglier, however, is the fact that a crowd of teenagers stood around watching, cheering and taking pictures during the time this poor girl was being brutalized.

A spokesman for the school in question has disclaimed responsibility by saying it is not our job “to take these students home.” They immediately retreated to the “cover thy ass” position most likely to deflect the massive lawsuits that will be coming their way once this whole ugly incident is sorted out. I can’t blame them for doing that, and while it is very easy to place the blame squarely on the school for not having proper security, I think the blame lies elsewhere.

This is certainly the most heinous case of criminal apathy that I have come across. There have been other incidents where young people overdose at parties and the other kids just leave them there, not caring whether they live or die, but this case reaches a new low. That is something our society seems to be getting better and better at.

I still remember being a teenager, centuries ago, and I remember getting mighty drunk a few times, but I can’t remember ever getting the urge to gather a group of friends together and finding a girl to gang rape. I wonder, how does this mindset occur? Where does the notion come from that this kind of act is acceptable? Can you classify anyone who does think this is acceptable behavior as human?

That last question applies to those who watched as well as those who participated. Who has failed to demonstrate a proper set of values to these children? I think the better question is, where does the blame end? We are all in some way responsible. We allow for the set of circumstances where children can become so desensitized to the suffering of others that this type of behavior becomes possible.

So, is this incident an anomaly, not likely to be repeated, or is this a symptom of the mindset that prevails in today’s young people, where the dehumanization of an innocent young girl is shrugged off and considered unsurprising? The shock factor will remain acute for some time to come, but once that wears off, what are we left with? It could be interpreted as a generation of children without a functional moral compass.

Since Americans find it so necessary to blame someone for incidents like these, I have a suggestion for you. Go look in the mirror, wipe the sleep from your eyes, and do something to counter the endless tide of violent images that are sweeping our children into an immoral cesspool.