In debates about political violence, public tragedies, or high-profile crimes, a familiar refrain arises: “I just don’t care.” Some insist they are not justifying the harm, not applauding the perpetrator, but merely expressing indifference to the victim’s suffering. On the surface, this seems like neutrality.
Yet when indifference is not silent but deliberately flaunted, broadcast for the world to see, it is no longer mere apathy. It becomes a form of moral commentary. And in cases where there is a clear perpetrator and a clear victim, that commentary almost always functions as victim-blaming in disguise. Or if you prefer, coded victim-blaming.
Indifference Is Never Neutral When It’s Performed
Private indifference is one thing. None of us can be emotionally invested in every human tragedy on earth. But when someone goes out of their way to announce indifference, the act carries weight. It is a signal to others: “This person’s suffering does not matter.” The performative nature of it transforms apathy into a statement of judgment. It is no longer a lack of opinion but a declaration of where one stands morally.
Imagine two scenarios. A person quietly reads about a murder in the newspaper and turns the page without a second thought. That’s indifference. Now imagine the same person posting online, “I don’t care he’s dead, he deserved no empathy.” That is no longer passive; it is an act of communication meant to diminish the victim’s humanity in the eyes of others.
Why This Becomes Victim-Blaming
When violence occurs, the moral lines are straightforward: there is an aggressor who commits harm, and there is a victim who suffers it. To publicly declare indifference toward the victim is to shift the focus away from the perpetrator’s responsibility and onto the supposed unworthiness of the victim.
This is the same mechanism that drives traditional victim-blaming. In sexual assault trials, for example, defense attorneys have historically pointed to a woman’s clothing, her nightlife, or her sexual history as reasons why she should not receive sympathy. The implication is not just that the victim was harmed, but that she was asking for it. Similarly, when someone says, “I don’t care that he was murdered; he was vile,” the moral emphasis shifts from condemning the killer to condemning the victim’s character.
Both examples share the same logic: they treat compassion as conditional, bestowed only if the victim’s life and behavior meet a standard of approval. Failing that test, the victim is rhetorically abandoned, and the moral weight of the crime is softened, if not excused outright.
Indifference as a Weapon
Why does this matter? Because flaunted indifference is not harmless. It is part of a cultural pattern that erodes the universality of rights and dignity. If compassion is conditional — based on political ideology, clothing choices, or lifestyle — then human dignity is no longer inherent. It is transactional, doled out to allies and stripped from opponents. That is not just cruelty; it is dangerous.
Once we allow public indifference to pass as neutrality, we create space for violence to be tacitly endorsed. After all, if the victim’s suffering is met not with empathy but with smug declarations of apathy, the perpetrator’s act is framed as less outrageous, more acceptable. Indifference becomes a subtle applause line for aggression.
The Ethical Imperative to Reject Performative Indifference
This does not mean that everyone must feel genuine sorrow for every victim. Emotions cannot be mandated. But when someone makes a public display of having no compassion, they are not escaping judgment — they are passing it. They are telling the world that certain victims “don’t count.”
Libertarians, humanists, and anyone committed to universal rights must see through this game. Flaunting indifference is not neutrality. It is moral commentary. And when it occurs in situations where a perpetrator has inflicted harm, that commentary effectively blames the victim for their fate.
Examples of Coded Victim-Blaming
Questions about actions or choices:
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“Why didn’t you fight back?”
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“Why were you walking alone at night?”
Focus on intoxication:
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“They shouldn’t have had so much to drink.”
Focus on appearance:
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“What were they wearing?”
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“They were dressed provocatively.”
Assigning shared responsibility:
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“You both need to change.”
Implying provocation:
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“They must have provoked him/her.”
- "But what did they say?"
Why People Engage in Victim-Blaming
To create distance:
Some individuals blame victims to separate themselves from the possibility of harm, thinking, “It would never happen to me if I behaved differently.”
Just-world fallacy:
This mindset assumes the world is fair and people get what they deserve. Blaming victims creates the illusion of safety: if victims caused their suffering, then others can avoid it by making “better” choices.
Social and psychological biases:
Gender roles, sexual objectification, and entrenched stereotypes all normalize blaming victims, especially in cases of sexual or political violence.
Consequences of Victim-Blaming
Silences victims:
Blaming language discourages survivors from reporting, speaking out, or seeking help, leaving them with shame or guilt.
Shifts focus from accountability:
It distracts attention from the perpetrator’s actions, reducing scrutiny of the person actually responsible.
Creates barriers to justice:
Victim-blaming attitudes make it harder for survivors to access resources, support, or legal remedies.
Creates barriers to free expression:
It serves as a self-imposed suppression of self-expression, preventing the free exchange of ideas.
Conclusion
A society cannot uphold human dignity while normalizing selective compassion. To boast about indifference is to smuggle in the logic of victim-blaming under a veneer of stoicism. The ethical response is simple: reject cruelty masquerading as neutrality. Because in the end, every public declaration of indifference is not an absence of judgment — it is a judgment. And it always lands hardest on the victim.
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