[URBAN NOTE] Aftermath
Feb. 3rd, 2007 07:28 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rfmcdonaldI haven't heard from the police yet about Monday's event at Spadina station, and so I don't know if the case is going to proceed to trial. I wouldn't be surprised if the attacker pled out: I can't imagine how his actions could not be interpreted as an unprovoked felony assault.
The most distressing legacy of the attack for me is a certain uneasiness, something that I felt faintly when I revisited Spadina station Thursday afternoon, and more strongly when hastened to board the Dufferin bus after a street person asked me for change. Monday night's encounter was quite exceptional in my experience--I've never before been at risk of violent attack by homeless people before, and none of the friends I've talked to have had similar experiences--but that new distrust and fear is still there. I don't know how long it will take to overcome this decided overgeneralization. (So this is how prejudices are formed.)
The most distressing legacy of the attack for me is a certain uneasiness, something that I felt faintly when I revisited Spadina station Thursday afternoon, and more strongly when hastened to board the Dufferin bus after a street person asked me for change. Monday night's encounter was quite exceptional in my experience--I've never before been at risk of violent attack by homeless people before, and none of the friends I've talked to have had similar experiences--but that new distrust and fear is still there. I don't know how long it will take to overcome this decided overgeneralization. (So this is how prejudices are formed.)
