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1
DoingtheRightThing: AssemblyRequired
ByJaneGilgunSummary
Doingtherightthingispartofourtruer,deeperselves.Yeteverydayuncountablenumbersofhumanbeingsdoterriblethingstoeachother.Thisarticleshowsseveralcircumstancescangetinthewaywhenweactuallywanttodotherightthing.Thisarticlealsosuggestswaystomakeupfordoingthewrongthingandforpushingustowarddoingtherightthingwhenweareabouttodootherwise.Itcantakealotofworktoensurethatwearetruetoourselvesandtoothers.
 AbouttheAuthor
 JaneF.Gilgunisawriterandprofessor.Shedoesresearchonthemeaningsofviolenceto perpetrators,howpersonsovercomeadversities,andthedevelopmentofviolentbehaviors.SheisaprofessorattheUniversityofMinnesota,TwinCities,USA,SchoolofSocialWork.SeeProfessorGilgun’sotherarticles,children’sstories,andbooksonscribd.com,Kindle,andiBooks.
 
2
DoingtheRightThing: AssemblyRequired
oingtherightthingispartofourDNA.Humanbeingscouldnotexistifwedidnothaveanin-builtsensethatwhatwedoaffectsotherpeople.Wehavecreatedart,technology,andliteraturethatbenefitthecreatorsbutalsobenefituncountableotherpeople.Ontheotherhand,therearetimeswhenwedothewrongthing.ThinkofJoePaterno,therecentlyfiredcoachofthePennStateFootballteam.Joehasdonemuchgood—buildinguplibraries,endowingprofessorships,benchingstarathleteswhentheydon’tgotoclass,andbeinganallaroundoutstandinghumanbeing.Yet,heturnedablindeyetothesexualabusethatoneofhisassistantcoachescommittedintheshowersofthelockerroomofPennState.PaternofollowedtheletterofthelawandreportedthesexualabusetoUniversityadministrators.Hedidnothingelsetoprotectchildren.Heknewthecoachstillhadopenaccesstochildrenthroughafoundationtheassistantcoachhadfounded.Paternosaidthatinhindsightheknowsheshouldhavedonemore.Heisprayingforthevictims.Iexpecthewilldomanyotherthingstomakeupforhisinaction.
DoingtheWrongThing
JoePaternoisnottheonlypersonwithanimpeccablereputation,orevenaneverydaygoodreputationwhodoesthewrongthing.ManypeopleknewaboutthekillingoftheJewsinNaziGermanyanddidnothing.DuringWorldWarII,theshiptheSt.Louiscarriedalmost1000Jewsfromcountrytocountryaskingforasylum.Theywereturneddown.TheshipreturnedtoGermanyandmanyofthesepassengersdiedinconcentrationcamps.ThatsomanypeopleknewofthekillingoftheJewsandotherstheNazisdidnotlikecausedworld-wideconcern.StanleyMilgramperformedexperimentstotrytounderstandwhygoodpeopledobadthings.Hesetupsituationswheresomestudentswere“teachers”andotherswere“learners.”The“teachers”weretoldtopushabuttonthatcausedanelectricshockwhenthe“learners”couldnotlearnthelesson.Thelessonwastolearnwordpairs.Foreachwronganswer,the“teachers”weretoldtoincreasetheintensityoftheshock.The“teachers”couldnotseethe“learners,”buttheycouldhearthescreams,cries,andbangingonfurnitureandwalls.Mostofthe“teachers”continuedtogiveshocks,someupto450volts.Milgramandothersreplicatedthisexperimentseveraltimeswithotherstudentsinotherplaces.The“teachers”didnotknowthatthe“learners”wereactorswhoreceivednoshocksatall.
D
 
3Inthe1970s,StanfordUniversityProfessorPhilZimbardodidanexperimentwheresomestudentsplayedprisonguardsandothersplayedprisoners.Withinashortperiodoftime,thestudentprisonguardsbecamesadistic.Theydeprived“prisoners”offood,water,andsleep.Theysprayed“prisoners”withfoamfromfireextinguishersandstrippedthemnaked.Therearemanyotherexamplesoftheterriblethingsthatapparentlygoodpeopledo.Thatgoodpeoplecandobadthingsishardtoaccept.Thoseofuswhoknowaboutsuchterribledeedsask,“Howcantheydosuchthings?”Idon’tknowwhetherthoseofuswhowonderthesethingsalsorealizethatmanypeoplewhohavedonesuchthingsexperiencelife-longguilt.Thedeed,however,isdone.Theycannotundotheharmtheyhavedone.Ironically,thoseofuswhoask,“Howcantheydosuchthings?”mayhavedonesomebadthingsthemselves.Thereare,ofcourse,degreesofharm.Yellingatachildmightnotbeasegregiousasmurder,rape,extortion,andstealingfromthepoortoenrichthemselvesbutdoinganythingthathurtsothersiswrong.
 AdmitWeHaveDoneWrong
So,whatdowedosothatweliveuptooursensesofourselvesasgoodpeople?Therearetwoavenuestopursue.Whattodowhenwehaveharmedothersandwhattodotopreventourselvesfromharmingothersinthefirstplace.
DoingHarm:DetachingfromtheHumanityofOthers
Ifwehavehurtothers,wehavetoadmitit,learnhowtotakeresponsibilityfortheharmwecause,makereparationfortheharm,anddoallwecannottodosuchharmagain.
Survival
Whenweharmothers,wehavedetachedfromtheirhumanityandcaughtupinsomethingelse,suchaswhatwewantismoreimportantthantheotherperson.Whatwewantcouldbesurvival.Inthesecircumstances,webelievethatifwespeakupforsomeoneelse,wecouldbekilled,orwecouldbeexcludedfromthegroup.Atthesedecisionpoints,theinstinctforourownsurvivaloutweighsourconcernforothers.
 Authority
Somepeoplewhohaveharmedothersbydoingnothingoftensaythattheywereobeyingsomeonewithauthorityoverthem.Theycouldhavebeenafraidofwhatwouldhappentothemiftheydisobeyed.Oneman,acombatveteran,saidthathiscaptainputaguntohisheadandsaid,“YoushootorIwillkillyou.”Soheshotthewomenandchildrenlinedupagainstthewallinfrontofhim.Whenhegotleaveandwenthome,thepolicefoundhimwalkingdownthestreetinthemiddleofthenightnaked.Hewasinalockedpsychiatric
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