[Zeeb]

Some photos taken after the drowning deaths of two Roma girls have prompted outrage. As the covered bodies awaited pick-up and as they were being carried away, sunbathers continued their visit to the beach seemingly indifferent to what had occurred. The Archbishop of Naples also condemmed those who were apparently unaffected by the tragedy.

This is an odd one but it seems that people are kinda rushing to judgement over this. It seems that when something like this happens in the U.S. the police close the immediate area and so you have no choice but to leave. It's also odd that the girls were carried away directly from the beach in coffins. I would be very sad if I witnessed something like this--but I'm not sure if one can assume those on the beach were indifferent.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe...ing/index.html

[Chuckit]

People die every day and we're all indifferent to it — we carry on swimming, sunbathing, sipping soft drinks and chatting. If the girls were drowning and the people didn't care enough to help, that would be one thing, or if these folks were trying to sunbathe by a beachside funeral and upsetting the family. But this wasn't like that — they weren't being insensitive to anyone's pain. I'm kind of surprised that they can be so near two bodies and not find it at least a little disturbing, but I'm not really horrified that a bunch of unrelated people went on with their day just like the rest of us.

[design219]

"A photographer who took photos at the scene told CNN the mood among sunbathers had been one of indifference."

If this is indeed the case, I'd have to agree that these people are not folks I'd like to know. I could not stay with an event like that.

[Shaddim]

A couple years ago I happened upon a car accident where a pedestrian was killed, I was moved by the way people around the scene were crying and consoling each other. One girl, unrelated to the victim, was so distraught over the death that she clung to me sobbing and moaning "why?". I had plans that day but I canceled them and went home to be with my family.

Perhaps people around here are different, who knows?

[ghporter]

There is still a lot of anti-Roma sentiment throughout Europe. And here in the States, most people don't know what "Roma" means. They often have heard the less than "acceptable" terms used instead of Roma, but very few Americans know what those terms mean either. Frankly, Italy has a poor record for how people deal with the Roma, so if the sunbathers knew the girls were Roma, that might be part of the explanation.

Europe is not the non-judgmental, "everyone loves everyone else" paradise a lot of people would like us in the States to think it is. Way too many very, very old grudges and prejudices remain, buried deep in both custom and culture.

[Captain Obvious]

Only in Europe....

[d4nth3m4n]

whatever.

[subego]

Note for the clueless such as myself.

Roma = Gypsies

[Chuckit]

Originally Posted by ghporter 

There is still a lot of anti-Roma sentiment throughout Europe. And here in the States, most people don't know what "Roma" means. They often have heard the less than "acceptable" terms used instead of Roma, but very few Americans know what those terms mean either.

In fairness, the Roma aren't exactly guiltless either.

Originally Posted by ghporter 

Frankly, Italy has a poor record for how people deal with the Roma, so if the sunbathers knew the girls were Roma, that might be part of the explanation.

I wonder how they'd know that feet sticking out of blankets are Roma. It's not impossible, but I wonder how everybody would know that.

[ghporter]

Originally Posted by Chuckit 

In fairness, the Roma aren't exactly guiltless either.


I wonder how they'd know that feet sticking out of blankets are Roma. It's not impossible, but I wonder how everybody would know that.

Good question. Maybe they could have seen them arrive at the beach and drawn a conclusion based on their clothing... I've seen more complex attributions made in passing at restaurants in the South.

[Uncle Doof]

Nowt to do with the fact that the girls are Roma.

Vedi Napoli e poi muori.

Naples is basically the murder capital of Europe. Those folks on that beach probably walked past thirty bodies just to get to the promenade. And got mugged five times. And they only live two blocks away.

[turtle777]

Originally Posted by d4nth3m4n 

whatever.

Thank you. Someone had to post it.

-t

[subego]

Originally Posted by ghporter 

And here in the States, most people don't know what "Roma" means. They often have heard the less than "acceptable" terms used instead of Roma, but very few Americans know what those terms mean either.

I knew that "Gypsies" was considered a pejorative, but I honestly didn't know there existed a term that wasn't a pejorative.

I had always assumed the Roma's own name for themselves (or its Anglicization) was "Gypsies", and it was their cultural proclivities which lent the name its connotation.

[Atomic Rooster]

Originally Posted by Captain Obvious 

Only in Europe....

Yeah, here they would all gather around and gawk and take lots of pics and stuff for "EyeWitness News at Eleven" instead of leaving lots of space.

I'm sure people were upset. European countries are different and people handle things differently.

About the coffins, that is the really strange part.

[TETENAL]

http://news.iafrica.com/worldnews/1047240.htm

“"I took several pictures — some showed holidaymakers going about their business, on others people were visibly concerned, or were helping to carry the coffins," Alessandro Garofalo told AFP.
Garofalo (30) — who works for the Naples daily Il Mattino — added: "On the photographs which the foreign newspapers picked out, everybody seemed indifferent.
"But in reality, only about half the people present acted as if nothing had happened, but many people either lent a hand or left the beach after the incident."
He added that his use of a telephoto lens made the sunbathers on the beach at Torregavata north of Naples look closer to the bodies than they in fact were.”

[Jawbone54]

I would've had to pack up my things and leave. Not only out of respect, but simply because my whole week would've been ruined. People sitting and chatting without a care in the world while two very young girls are taken away in coffins is just plain weird. It doesn't really seem human.

I do have a gypsy story while I'm here though...

I used to work for a funeral home; I would drive the limo for the family, help set up the funeral sites, and other random little jobs. One time we had a funeral that required us to drive a few hours into Arkansas for a gypsy funeral. My co-workers said to prepare for anything. I didn't really know what they meant.

I watched the husband of the deceased woman plant a lingering, open mouth kiss on her, which I thought was the weird part. UNTIL they tied a live chicken to the tombstone and then all drove away, leaving the chicken there.

On the other hand, they were some really, really nice people.

[Jawbone54]

Originally Posted by TETENAL 

http://news.iafrica.com/worldnews/1047240.htm

“"I took several pictures — some showed holidaymakers going about their business, on others people were visibly concerned, or were helping to carry the coffins," Alessandro Garofalo told AFP.
Garofalo (30) — who works for the Naples daily Il Mattino — added: "On the photographs which the foreign newspapers picked out, everybody seemed indifferent.
"But in reality, only about half the people present acted as if nothing had happened, but many people either lent a hand or left the beach after the incident."
He added that his use of a telephoto lens made the sunbathers on the beach at Torregavata north of Naples look closer to the bodies than they in fact were.”

You could kind of count on some half-truths in this story. Surely so many people weren't unaffected by this.

Also, the long lens giving the impression that the onlookers were closer than they really were makes sense. I believe it's called "compression."