"What happened that night on Kitty's street with all those witnesses and no action was studied extensively for decades by social scientists trying to better understand what they call bystandered apathy?" — Ashley Flowers
"The idea is that the responsibility to act in a crisis is shared among all the people who witness it, which means the smaller the number of witnesses, the greater the personal responsibility on each person." — Ashley Flowers
"The New York Times narrative confirmed what people already suspected about urban life. There is no community in a city, because is it really a community if 38 people, 38 neighbors can stand there and watch while you die alone in the dark?" — Ashley Flowers
This episode delves into the infamous case of Kitty Genovese, whose brutal murder in 1964 ignited a national conversation about public apathy and the inadequacies of emergency response systems. The narrative recounts the attack, where Genovese was stabbed twice, initially scared off her assailant by a neighbor's shout, only for him to return later to sexually assault and stab her again. The initial police investigation was hampered by discriminatory assumptions and a focus on Genovese's personal life rather than the crime itself. The killer, Winston Mosley, was eventually apprehended for unrelated burglary charges, and confessed to Genovese's murder along with other crimes.
The pivotal moment that transformed this tragedy into a catalyst for change was a New York Times article reporting that 38 witnesses heard or saw aspects of the attack but did not call the police. This report, though later acknowledged to have factual inaccuracies regarding the number of witnesses and their involvement, profoundly shocked the public and led to extensive studies on "bystander apathy." Social scientists theorized that in densely populated areas, the perceived responsibility to act is diluted among many, leading individuals to assume others will intervene or have already reported the incident.
In response to the widespread public concern and the recognized difficulties in reaching emergency services in 1964 (requiring direct calls to local precincts or operator assistance), national calls for a standardized emergency number grew. Fire chiefs had been advocating for this since 1957, and the Genovese case amplified the urgency. The development led to the selection of 911 in the US, chosen for its ease of dialing on rotary phones and its compatibility with phone system infrastructure. The first 911 call was made in 1968, and the system has since evolved significantly with technological advancements, including location tracking and text-to-911 capabilities, profoundly impacting public safety and emergency response.