A father littering in front of his kids. Should I say something?
I was in Washington Square Park charging my panels. A family of mother, father, and three kids sat on a bench near me, likely tourists.
They had takeout food with plenty of packaging from a nearby store. A napkin fell through a gap between the benches so it was behind the father. He turned to try to pick it up but couldn’t reach it after trying contorting a few times to reach it. He could have gotten up and turned around, but instead just left it.
Was he leaving it there permanently or just until he could reach it better? For the better part of a minute, I thought he was waiting maybe to finish the food in his lap to make getting up easier, but it became apparent he was going to leave it there.
I couldn’t believe a father would role model for his kids to litter like that. I tried coming up with something to say to him, but couldn’t think of anything without too great a risk of him feeling provoked.
I couldn’t leave it there. I picked it up and just handed it to him without saying anything. He thanked me, but that was all of our interaction.
Can you help me? What could I have said, if anything, to a father who left garbage on the ground in front of his kids?
I wouldn’t be able to sleep if I littered in front of impressionable kids. What has this world come to? I don’t see how it matters how many other people litter. Even if everyone in the world litters (sadly likely the case) I see no justification for it (though many excuses, sadly)
I didn’t take a picture of the litter, but this picture of other litter shows the space between Washington Square Park benches where his napkin fell.
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