Vieste, minor forced to kneel and beaten by bullies: images spread on social media

Those who were there mostly laughed. Others uttered insults and slapped. Still others filmed what was happening with their cell phones. Then they shared the images on social media. It happened in Vieste, where a group of bullies forced a twelve-year-old boy to kneel, insulting him and then slapping him. It all happened in front of a dozen boys and girls who were amused by what they were witnessing. No one thought to say “enough” or call the police. Only one of those present tried to defend the victim and was stopped. Why didn’t any of the victim’s peers try to stop the violence? Why did those present remain motionless with their cell phones in their hands? The only voice that can be heard in the video that was filmed a few meters from the center is that of the bullies who shout: «Bow down».

After the images were spread on social media, the first voices of indignation and concern were raised, also linked to the fact that in recent days a similar attack against another minor occurred. The families of the boys involved were summoned to the Municipality. The Juvenile Prosecutor’s Office of Bari was also informed of the attack. “We have taken action with social services and the Carabinieri to identify the protagonists,” explained the mayor of Vieste, Giuseppe Nobiletti. “We need to recover values. Kids are no longer educated in feelings”commented the mayor interviewed by Ansa. «And it is a task that falls first and foremost to families. Just as it is important to educate children on the correct use of social media. The excessive use of social networks, even in adolescence, makes children refractory to positive values».

There is the exhibitionism of evilthe attempt to show one’s value by humiliating others, popularity at all costs, contempt for others and for oneself, at twelve years old. There is perhaps also the lack of a conscious reading of reality, of what is happening before your eyes. Because remaining impassive in the face of violence is something we are getting used to, at all ages, often because the images that continuously scroll before us tell of it in every form. Almost making it “normal”. But there is nothing normal about violence. There is all this in the short frames that make up the video that is still online and who knows how long it will remain there.