Dressed as a “homeless woman”, surrounded by pigeons. Claudia Murru, a doctor and health director of a senior care facility, went around the center of Cagliari in this false guise. Hers was a social experiment, “inspired by the “Pigeon Lady” from the film “Home Alone”, to observe people’s reactions”. The result: “My experience revealed a worrying picture of today’s society, characterized by detachment, judgment and fear, with rare exceptions”.
The most common reaction, Murru explains, "was indifference, a lack of hilarity." With his clothing he encountered "disapproving looks, they couldn't soften even when prompted by a smile or a greeting from me. This suggests a general difficulty in letting oneself go to lightness and extemporaneous humor, as if there were a sort of emotional barrier that prevents connection with others, even through a simple laugh."
Many people, according to the analysis, "reacted with prejudice, denouncing the widespread tendency to classify others based on appearance and to negatively judge unconventional behavior, even if harmless."
There were those who were afraid of (fake) pigeons, but above all «it emerged that many were terrified and distrustful of what is perceived as "different" or "strange", due to professional deformation, I could not ignore the analogy with the stigma and marginalization experienced by people with dementia».
Glimmers of hope came from two categories of passers-by: "The elderly and the homeless. They were the only ones to approach out of curiosity, to exchange a friendly word, showing openness, a few laughs and a clear desire to socialize. It makes you think that these social categories, often marginalized, were paradoxically more capable of authentic human connection. The elderly," continues Murru, "who perhaps retain the gift of wonder, have memories of more direct social interactions and less mediated by technology. Could the homeless, who live on the margins of society, have developed greater empathy and a need for human contact? I met many children, only one approached out of curiosity for the pigeons."
Going into technical detail, in the balance of the experience entrusted to social media, the doctor writes: «I have seen first-hand the inability to manage direct relational dynamics, the paradox between the apparent and ephemeral connection offered by social networks and the real difficulty of relating in person. Social media can create an illusion of closeness, but they lack the depth and authenticity of face-to-face interactions.
I have been running an awareness campaign for the recovery of a sense of community for the elderly for some time. My social experiment highlighted a worrying loss of a sense of community and sharing. In an increasingly individualistic and frenetic urban context, people seemed anesthetized and unable to interact with others, even in light and fun situations.
(Unioneonline/E.Fr.)