One of the sad facts of life is that not all relationships lead to better lives. They can even make one’s situation even worse. It is a heartbreaking sight to see such a relationship sour to points of verbal, emotional, and even physical abuse.
Nevertheless, there’s something innately satisfying about even the most random and uninvolved bystanders who work up the courage to stand up for others.
This social experiment showed what would happen if someone bullied their girlfriend in public — and the results were shocking.
Social experimenter Matthiew Bandeira’s YouTube channel specializes in staged events intended to see how bystanders would respond. For example, in one of his videos, a boyfriend pretends to verbally abuse his girlfriend in public.
The girlfriend, played by fellow YouTuber Megan Santos, convincingly acts hurt and withdrawn as onlookers remain nearby.
The first person who sees this happening immediately jumps into action.
A bystander sitting at a bench wasted no time in getting up and coming to Santos’ defense. What’s even more admirable is that not once does he allow the situation to escalate towards violence and instead rebukes him. “You can’t be doing that, man!” said the first bystander.
“What are you doing? Is that how you talk to somebody?”
The following person also took a stance firmly against the abuse, intervening as it visibly became “worse.”
“Why are you being so hard on the girl?” another man asked, rising from another bench. Despite the understandable fury, but did not raise a single finger.
“You don’t have the right to talk to her like that.”
In a triumphant demonstration of human decency, many average bystanders came over to help, leading to a memorable moment.
As the couple once again did their scripted routine, a man sitting against a small park building stood up and came to the girl’s aid. He remained calm and addressed Bandeira with a moving question.
“Are you a man, or are you still a little kid?”
He then told the “boyfriend” to chill out and talk a walk. How often do you get asked a question like that?
The final stranger was a victim of emotional abuse, and even then, she still came to the rescue.
Despite her timid appearance, the final bystander was a woman who had experienced emotional abuse. While the situation must have elicited a lot of unpleasant memories, she nevertheless valiantly intervenes.
“I’m sorry to say this and interrupt,” she said, “but that’s really not right.”
She continued to shame the boyfriend and defend the young lady.
While social experiments may be staged, they are a good reminder that human decency is more prevalent than we think.
Emotional abuse might not leave bruises or welts, but it does leave behind a wound that takes much longer to heal, if ever. It’s important that everyone does their part to make the Earth a better place.
Take a moment and check out the whole video below!
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