Most of us, as parents, would seek to help any child who looked like they were in trouble – but if the following viral video is anything to go by, not everyone feels this way.
A social experiment carried out by New Zealand Police Recruitment has provided much food for thought this week, raising questions over how caring we are as a society.
As part of the campaign, designed to encourage would-be officers to sign up, a young child actor was hired to hang around on the streets and rifle through a rubbish bin for food.
As you will see in the video below, the little boy is dirty and alone and, as he looks for scraps in the bin, he appears to be quite hungry.
So, how do you think those around him reacted? It may not surprise you to see that, despite being exposed to an estimated 500 people, very few actually asked the child if he was okay.
Indeed, while many just looked at the boy and walked on, others even walked up to the bin and dumped their rubbish in there without giving the needy child a second glance.
Lots of people have been asking questions about the video we released yesterday. Here's some quick facts...1 = The boy...
Posted by NZ Police Recruitment on Monday, March 21, 2016
There was some hope when three women were seen stopping the boy and asking him if he was okay, also offering him food and money, but a follow-up post on the official Facebook page revealed that they were in the minority.
The essential message of the campaign is this: do you care enough to be a cop? The authorities surmise that, if you would have stopped to check on this boy, the chances are you have what it takes to sign up to the service.
No matter where you are in the world as you watch the video below, the chances are that you have witnessed a similar scene. If any piece of media proves that we need to open up our hearts more and look out for those in our communities, it’s this.
Hungry boy - Do you Care Enough to be a Cop?What would you do?#icareenough
Posted by NZ Police Recruitment on Sunday, March 20, 2016
