An Appeal for More Humanity

We are currently on a school trip in Berlin. After a theater performance, we were hanging around outside for a bit.

A man with a migration background approached me, mumbling something to himself. He had saliva in his beard, and his hand trembled as he held it out to me, begging. I gave him a handful of nuts that I was about to eat, thinking he might be hungry. But he threw them to the ground and said something in an agitated manner. He probably wanted money. I told him that I wouldn’t give him any money. He then started shouting at me and harassing me, but I didn’t say anything further. Then he began to walk away, spitting in my direction again. I managed to dodge it.

Now he staggered through the crowd of students, mumbling at them as well. Some started laughing, others looked disgusted, and some provoked him. He shouted at them, and some "tough" and "masculine" jerk was held back by his friends to prevent him from getting physical. A woman who obviously knew the man tried to calm him down and gave him a cigarette. Then she led him away from the area calmly.

I stood there and felt so bad. How can people be so inhumane? This man has probably made many mistakes in his life, but being in this situation is not solely his fault. And even if it were, laughing at him and treating him like a strange attraction to mock later is so disgusting! And then there are some idiots (yes, it’s mostly men) who provoke this poor person just to show off how cool they are. This is truly the absolute worst.

After that, I went for a walk and cried. I felt so sorry for the man. He is in a terrible situation and will likely spend the rest of his life like this. On drugs. Not taken seriously by anyone. Seen as an inferior person and not a full member of our society. And I can’t do anything about it. Those who could do something only see the "stupid bum" who drinks away his money and has nothing under control. More of an amusing, grotesque, and morbid attraction than a human being.

I was depressed for about an hour. The only thing that helped me was listening to friends and music. 2018 by KAFVKA.

We need solidarity. We need humanity. Form bonds to protect yourselves. Don’t be assholes. And have compassion for the person on the corner or at the train station. They are people like all of us, who deserve to be treated just as well as you and I.

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