The Bystander Effect: Safety in Numbers?

On the night of March 13, 1964 at 3:10 in the morning, 28 year-old Kitty Genovese was stabbed repeatedly in front of an audience of 38 people. She screams, "Oh my God, he stabbed me! Please help me!" Instead of rushing to her side, the crowd only stares. Many of them turn and look the other way. One person yells from a nearby window, "Hey, leave that girl alone." The assailant takes off running, and Kitty is left on the pavement in front of her apartment, bleeding and begging for help. Some time passes. The assailant decides to return and begins stabbing her again. Now Kitty is screaming,…