Opinion: On Good Samaritans and Subways

Right there in the subway stationPhoto byTammy Remington

He was definitely a person who got loads of personal space when he plopped down his two bags of belongings and claimed a seat on the 2 train at 14th Street. From our vantage point, about halfway down the car, there was no immediate experience of unpleasant smells, but they can creep up on you, so judgment was reserved.

As the doors opened at each stop, there was the expected balancing of wanting to get a seat versus not risking bad odors or worse. The fact that he was muttering to himself convinced most to keep their distance.

It’s hard to say whether there’s been an actual increase in the number of distressed, unsheltered people riding the subways (although the hysterical editorial writers at The New York Post would have it so). I moved to the city in 2000, and there have always been sad, broken people on the trains and in the stations.

A real first for me, however, was getting off a 1 train at 23rd Street about six months ago to find a skinny young person of indeterminate gender shooting up within sight of what had once been the booth where an actual person sat and sold Metrocards. The booth and the seller of Metrocards are long gone.

Junkies, however, seem to be making a comeback.

Like this wasn't a foregone conclusion. Please MTA, just don't.Photo byTammy Remington

Instead, every station now boasts screens. Many, many screens, which often double as advertising space and are also often smashed in. Was this something the MTA didn’t take into consideration when it decided to spend all that money installing screens everywhere? Asking for a friend.

The train pulled into the station at 96th Street, and our guy was nodding. Suddenly, he realized this was his stop and grabbed one of his bags — the bigger one — and dashed out of the door. Before he could get back into the car to grab his other bag, though, the door closed. We all looked at each other, at the bag, and at the closed door against which the man was throwing himself and yelling. When it became clear that the conductor was not going to open the door and the train began to ease out of the station, one quick-thinking passenger went into action.

He grabbed that other bag, ran to the door that leads to the next car, wrenched it open and flung the bag out onto the platform. The guy’s little Bic lighter was still on the seat, but at least he had both of his bags now, thanks to that fast-moving Good Samaritan.

People who treasure quiet and a well-ordered life tend to dislike cities for exactly these types of experiences. Thomas Jefferson famously viewed cities as a “pestilence”, but then again, the guy championed breeding slaves among other questionable activities. So there’s that.

Of all the ways we divide ourselves, the split between those preferring city life to those committed to the peace and quiet of a nice place in the country seems to be one of the most enduring.

The only thing I can say to those preferring their six acres with the three-car garage or that four-bedroom condo in a gated community is that they really should be grateful that everyone doesn’t want what they have. There wouldn’t be enough room on the planet for all of us to live that way. So, yeah, the city and its diverse and usually chaotic mix of people and experiences is certainly not everyone’s notion of an ideal place to live, but every country person needs to thank their lucky stars for those of us who do prefer living in cities.

And every city person needs to sharpen their Good Samaritan instincts!