<
https://theconversation.com/giving-out-flowers-on-tiktok-is-this-a-random-act-of-kindness-or-just-benevolent-ageism-187064>
"In June, 22-year-old Harrison Pawluk filmed himself staging a “random act of
kindness”, giving a bunch of flowers to an older woman sitting alone in a
Melbourne food court.
His video went viral on TikTok, attracting 57 million views within a week.
Comments on the post included, “when she started crying, I couldn’t hold it
back” and “wow that was so beautiful I swear I would cry”.
Acts of kindness can boost wellbeing for the giver, the recipient, and even the
viewers of selfless acts. Social media influencers have found ways to commodify
this by presenting them as random and unexpected.
But this gesture was interpreted by Maree, the woman targeted for the video, as
an artificially staged production that left her feeling “dehumanised” and like
“clickbait” for tabloid fodder.
In the media, individuals aged over 60 are often depicted as a homogeneous
group of elderly people who lack personality, social identity or individuality.
It’s not just a “random act of kindness”. Pawluk’s actions – and some of the
media coverage – unearths a much bigger problem of “benevolent ageism”."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
