{"id":160,"date":"2026-05-13T15:49:09","date_gmt":"2026-05-13T19:49:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/officeofcivilrights.cornell.edu\/education-and-training\/?page_id=160"},"modified":"2026-06-13T09:22:18","modified_gmt":"2026-06-13T13:22:18","slug":"bystander-intervention","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/officeofcivilrights.cornell.edu\/education-and-training\/welcome\/bystander-intervention\/","title":{"rendered":"Bystander Intervention"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What is a Bystander?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Bystanders are individuals who witness events or situations that could lead to dangerous or criminal events and, by their presence, may have the opportunity to change the outcome by providing assistance and intervention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Why Intervene?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Cornell is a caring community. Our responsibilities go beyond simply refraining from engaging in prohibited conduct as individuals. As community members and future leaders, we also have a responsibility to reduce the incidence and likelihood of harassment. Intervening can be valuable to all community members, including those who may have experienced prohibited conduct or may have engaged in it and are at risk of negative consequences for their behavior.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" style=\"font-style:normal;font-weight:500\">Examples of interpersonal situations where you may be a bystander:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>An acquaintance of yours makes a racially biased joke in a private context.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>You overhear an individual making a sexist or homophobic remark about a classmate.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>You observe a marginalized individual experiencing microaggressions from another individual.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">(Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.apa.org\/pi\/health-equity\/bystander-intervention\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">American Psychological Association<\/a>)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Action Steps<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Once people recognize their own power to become an active bystander, they can take action to mitigate the effects of the situation. There are a variety of approaches to intervening in interpersonal situations that people can use depending on their comfort level:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"expander scripted wp-block-accordions\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"block-accordion-header\">Distract: An indirect approach to de-escalate the situation.<\/h3> <!-- First accordion -->\n\n\t\t\t\t<div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<ul>\n<li>Distraction is a subtle and creative way to intervene. Its aim is simply to divert the incident of harassment by interrupting it. The keys to effective Distraction are: 1) to ignore the person who is harassing and engage directly with the person who is being harassed; and 2) don\u2019t talk about or refer to the harassment that\u2019s happening; Instead, talk about something completely unrelated.<\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #800000\"><em>How?<\/em><\/span>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #800000\">Start a conversation with the person being harassed or find another way to draw attention away from them.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #800000\">Ask them for directions or the time, or drop something.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"block-accordion-header\">Direct: Assess your safety first. Speak up about the harassment. Be firm and clear.<\/h3> <!-- First accordion -->\n\n\t\t\t\t<div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<ul>\n<li>Sometimes, we may want to respond directly to harassment by naming the inappropriate behavior and confronting the person doing harm. Use this strategy with caution because Direct intervention can be risky \u2013 the person harassing may redirect their behavior towards the intervening bystander, or they may escalate the situation in another way.<\/li>\n<li>The first key to Direct intervention is to assess the situation before you decide to respond, by asking yourself the following questions:\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none\">\n<ul>\n<li>Are you physically safe?<\/li>\n<li>Is the person being harassed physically safe?<\/li>\n<li>Does it seem unlikely that the situation will escalate?<\/li>\n<li>Can you tell if the person being harassed wants someone to speak up?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>If you can answer yes to all of these questions, you might choose a direct response.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>The second key to Direct intervention is to keep it short and succinct. As tempting as it may be, avoid engaging in dialogue, debate, or arguments \u2013 this is how situations can escalate. If the person harassing responds to your Direct intervention, focus your attention on assisting the person who was harmed, instead of engaging with the person doing the harm.<\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #800000\"><em>How?<\/em><\/span>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #800000\">Say: \u201cThat\u2019s inappropriate, leave them alone!\u201d or \u201cThat\u2019s not okay, please stop right now.\u201d<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #800000\">You can also talk to the person being harassed about what is going on. Ask, \u201cAre you okay? Should I get your help? Should we get out of here?\u201d<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"block-accordion-header\">Delegate: Get help from someone else.<\/h3> <!-- First accordion -->\n\n\t\t\t\t<div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<ul>\n<li>Delegating is asking a third party for help in intervening. Ideally, this third party is someone in a position of authority \u2013 such as a security guard, professor, or administrator. The keys to Delegating are: 1) look for a Delegate who is ready and willing to help; and 2) when you Delegate someone to help you, try to tell them as clearly as possible what you\u2019re witnessing and how you\u2019d like them to help.<\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #800000\"><em>How?<\/em><\/span>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #800000\"><em>Speak to someone nearby who also notices what\u2019s happening or reach out to the person in a position of authority who might be better positioned to intervene. Whoever you reach out to, work together to develop a plan to intervene.<\/em><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"block-accordion-header\">Delay: After the incident is over, check in with the person who was harassed.<\/h3> <!-- First accordion -->\n\n\t\t\t\t<div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<ul>\n<li>Even if we can\u2019t act in the moment, we can still make a difference for someone who\u2019s been harassed by checking in on them after the fact. Many forms of harassment occur in passing or very quickly, and it\u2019s not always possible to intervene in another way. This doesn\u2019t mean we have to ignore what happened and move on. We can help reduce the harm experienced by speaking to the affected person after an instance of harassment.<\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #800000\"><em>How?<\/em><\/span>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #800000\">Ask the person who was affected if they\u2019re okay and let them know you saw what happened and that it wasn\u2019t okay.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #800000\">Ask them if there\u2019s any way you can support them.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #800000\">Share resources with them and offer to help them make a report if they want to.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #800000\">If you documented the incident, ask them whether they want you to provide the documentation.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"block-accordion-header\">Document: It can be helpful for the person being harassed to have a video or other evidence of the event. Only document the situation if it\u2019s safe.<\/h3> <!-- First accordion -->\n\n\t\t\t\t<div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<ul>\n<li>Documenting involves recording or taking notes on an instance of harassment. It can be very helpful to record an incident of harassment, but there are some key strategies to consider for safely and responsibly documenting harassment: First, assess the situation\u2014Is anyone helping the person being harassed? If not, use another intervention strategy. Recording someone\u2019s experience of harm without ensuring they\u2019re already receiving help can exacerbate the harm being caused. Laws about recording in public vary, so check local laws first. If someone else is already helping out: assess your own safety, and if you are safe, begin documenting.\n<ul>\n<li>ALWAYS ask the person who was harassed what they want to do with your recording and\/or notes.<\/li>\n<li>NEVER post it online or use it without their permission.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #800000\"><em><strong>How?<\/strong><\/em><\/span>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #800000\">When reporting an incident that occurred via writing, save copies to attach to your report or share during an investigation.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"color: #800000\">Some important tips for documenting public harassment:<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"color: #800000\">Keep a safe distance<\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-64a7c3f5ce21bd7c78db7accc2e0855e\"><span style=\"color: #800000\">Film street signs or other landmarks that help identify the location<\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-725f9194c6d2939ee870fb869e3dd8e2\"><span style=\"color: #800000\">Say the date and time<\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-1ea424ae628ebf3f808d32010eab314f\"><span style=\"color: #800000\">Keep your attention on the person being harassed \u2013 make sure anything you do is focused on supporting them.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Sources and Additional Resources<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Much of the information provided above is from <a href=\"https:\/\/righttobe.org\/guides\/bystander-intervention-training\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Right to Be\u2019s page on the 5 D\u2019s of Bystander Intervention<\/a>. Check out their site for more details and bystander intervention tactics.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Cornell\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/health.cornell.edu\/initiatives\/campaigns-materials\/intervene-bystander-campaign\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u201cIntervene\u201d Bystander Campaign developed by Cornell Health<\/a>, includes a great 20-minute video with scenarios and intervention techniques.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>For additional context and strategies, check out the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.apa.org\/pi\/health-equity\/bystander-intervention\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">American Psychological Association\u2019s \u201cBystander Intervention Tip Sheet<\/a>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>\u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.learningforjustice.org\/sites\/default\/files\/2021-05\/Speak-Up-2021.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Speak Up!<\/a>\u201d, from the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.splcenter.org\/learning-for-justice\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Southern Poverty Law Center\u2019s Teaching Tolerance initiative<\/a>, includes multiple scenario-specific strategies for bystander intervention.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"What is a Bystander? Bystanders are individuals who witness events or situations that could lead to dangerous or criminal events and, by their presence, may have the opportunity to change the outcome by providing assistance and intervention. Why Intervene? Cornell is a caring community. Our responsibilities go beyond simply refraining from engaging in prohibited conduct [&hellip;]","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":0,"parent":6,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-160","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/officeofcivilrights.cornell.edu\/education-and-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/160","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/officeofcivilrights.cornell.edu\/education-and-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/officeofcivilrights.cornell.edu\/education-and-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/officeofcivilrights.cornell.edu\/education-and-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/officeofcivilrights.cornell.edu\/education-and-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=160"}],"version-history":[{"count":28,"href":"https:\/\/officeofcivilrights.cornell.edu\/education-and-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/160\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":384,"href":"https:\/\/officeofcivilrights.cornell.edu\/education-and-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/160\/revisions\/384"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/officeofcivilrights.cornell.edu\/education-and-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/6"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/officeofcivilrights.cornell.edu\/education-and-training\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=160"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}