Real-Life Good Samaritan Stories
originally published 11/17/20; updated 9/8/24
by Catharine Hannay, founder of MindfulTeachers.org
An incarcerated young man named Dameon describes performing an act of kindness for one of the guards.
“The CO (custody officer) was trying to collect our IDs. […] There were so many of us that he was having trouble holding all the IDs. […] All of a sudden, they popped out of his hands and were all over the floor. They were everywhere.
Everyone started laughing and laughing. They were making nasty remarks and really enjoying watching him get so upset. He was so embarrassed and angry, I thought for sure he would have a heart attack. I’ve never seen a white guy so red!
Something happened inside of me, and I felt bad for the guy. I never feel bad for the cops, but it just came over me. For some reason, I decided to help him pick up all the IDs.
We were both down on the ground picking up the cards, just the two of us, and the other inmates were making fun of me now, but I didn’t care. I felt bad for the guy. I’ve been laughed at and pick on and I know how it feels.”
quoted in ‘Leaving the Big City and Finding Hope in the Big House,’ by Rev. Diane Wilde, in Still, in the City (p. 216-217)
What Does It Mean to Be a 'Good Samaritan'?
We're all familiar with the phrase 'Good Samaritan' but not everyone realizes it comes from a parable in the Christian Gospels. (I have no agenda of trying to convince anyone they should or shouldn't follow any particular religious teachings; I'm just explaining the background of the parable.)
In Luke 10: 29-37, Jesus tells this story to a lawyer who asks, “Who is my neighbor?” because he wants to know who is included in the ‘love thy neighbor’ category.
The answer is a challenging one: not only should you not leave anyone out of your circle of compassion, you should look for goodness in the people you most want to exclude.
Thomas Merton explains,
“Let us remember that while to us all Samaritans are Good Samaritans, it was not so to those who first heard the parable. In their eyes all Samaritans were, by the very fact, bad.
Indeed, that was why a Samaritan had to be the subject of the parable: since it was necessary for the hearers to realize that at least one Samaritan could be a good one.”
a Thomas Merton Reader, p. 348
In other words, The Good Samaritan isn't a story about how nice 'we' are. It's a story about how one of 'them' helped one of 'us.' These days, a more appropriate title might be something like
The Good Buddhist
The Good Christian
The Good Conservative
The Good Hindu
The Good Jew
The Good Liberal
The Good Muslim
Pick whichever title from that list is the hardest for you to accept. Or use the name of a group you see in a negative light: a particular gender or ethnicity? the rival sports team?
You may think you don't have any biases, but nearly all of us do, and it's important to become aware of this. You might be interested in a post by my colleague Brandi Lust on Building Narratives of Inclusion: Mitigating Implicit and Explicit Bias.
I also recommend Two Powerful Empathy Practices to Awaken Compassion, which is what I do personally to think about different points of view and expand my own circle of compassion.
More Examples of Real-Life ‘Good Samaritans’
If you’re teaching the story I mentioned at the beginning, about the incarcerated young man who helped a guard, you might also want to share the story of Roberta Bell, who lost her job as a prison guard because she decided to care for an inmate’s baby.
And here are several more examples of helpers from groups that frequently experience tension or even violence.
Supporting Members of Other Faiths
German church hosts Muslims without a place to pray during Ramadan
American synagogue welcomes Muslims whose mosque was damaged in a fire
Generations of Muslims in India have taken care of a synagogue
(above stories from GoodNewsNetwork.org)
Police and Protesters Helping Each Other
Black state trooper helps an ailing white supremacist protester (from the New York Times)
White police officer comforts five-year-old black girl at protest for social justice(from ABC News)
Black man who sued for wrongful arrest saves police officer from burning car (from USA Today)
Conclusion
We're all getting bombarded by news of negativity, hostility, and bad behavior. It's important to balance that with the many examples of people from all over the world who dedicate themselves to kindness and compassion. Once you start looking for them, you'll find Good Samaritans everywhere.
Related Posts
There are many more resources here at MindfulTeachers.org on building compassion and serving our communities, including the following posts:
Compassion and Service: Quotations for Reflection and Discussion
‘Look for the Helpers’: Kindness, Compassion, and Service All Over the World
You and your students might also be interested in these video playlists about people from a wide range of backgrounds finding ways to help others: