BTWAM Response
Pop Your Bubble The attached photo was taken in Paris, but this situation occurs all across the world. It is of a homeless man sitting helplessly on a staircase, being ignored by affluent individuals. The individuals are walking as to not crease their shoes. Their Neiman-Marcus coat collars are popped up to prevent them from becoming slightly chilly. One individual is making a call. However, what do they all have in common? They are blind to seeing the struggling man. They are not empathizing, interacting, or understanding the struggler because they are stuck in their own materialistic bubbles. Many of us can relate to subconsciously ignoring struggling people because we are floating in our own bubble ourselves. From observing this image, I myself relate to being in a bubble. By knowing that, I am able to briefly pop it, and am able to view Coates’s work with a more honest and empathetic lens. Material things keep us from empathizing with those who struggle because they disco