3:15 AM

by Nick   Mar 28, 2018


Now I lay my eyes
Here at the scene of time
By surprise, it has taken me
Chanting this whisper

"Apathy is the worst of crime."

I rehearse the thoughts,
Wondering what to make of it.
How could someone let this happen?
Poor Kitty; her pain, her loss of hope.
All I hear are those screams:

"OH HELP ME
MY GOD!
HE STABBED ME!"

Wounds that echo:
Her undeniable terror.
All I could muster was:

"Leave her be!"

That awful scum Moseley-
Who feels pride for his feat.
Really ought to be locked up
For his disastrous deed.

Yet what will become of me?
This horrid example of human efficacy…
Letting the monster reap on skin so pale,
While the hero sits and watches T.V.

*Kitty Genovese is the name of the New York City woman
who was stabbed to death by Winston Moseley near her home.

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  • 6 years ago

    by Kitty Cat Lady

    Nick this is made all the more disturbing because of the reality aspect of it. I'm very familiar with the bystander effect from my studies, and your line "apathy is the worst of crime" is so apt here.
    Apparently, when being attacked - the best thing to shout out is "FIRE!!!", rather than "HELP!" ... as it's more likely people will come to your aid. What an odd race we are!
    Very well written and the point well made :-) x
    =^.^=

  • 6 years ago

    by Poet on the Piano

    Chills from this piece! I hadn't heard of the names before and you brought this piece alive, the true horror of it.

    I read they believed Moseley was a necrophile and wanted a woman as his victim because they were frail? Then there's apparently question of bystanders and why the police weren't alerted immediately.

    I can't even begin to imagine how terrifying that would be...

    • 6 years ago

      by Nick

      In one of my poetry classes, this was a piece I worked on as an effort in non-fiction. Kitty Genovese is well known for being a prominent example of the "bystander-effect" She was murdered by Moseley and and despite her screaming and people being aware of "something" going on, she was never "saved".

      So in this piece a big thing I tried to capture was this idea that Moseley is this absolute monster for murdering her, as all murderers are... but how disgusting is human apathy? Could it be possible that it is worse or on some level equal to such evil?

      Thank you for your thoughts!

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