Why Do People Loot?
I watched all the Chile “looting” footage I could find yesterday. It was hard to know what I was looking at, as it always is when you are watching disasters from afar—and often even when you are right there. I mostly saw people carrying water, diapers, sacks of flour and other necessities. I saw young men playing Robin Hood, throwing paper towels and toilet paper rolls from storefront balconies to older women waiting, arms uplifted, below.
Not to say that these people are wrong—or right. Just to say, I don’t know either way. I do think looting is happening, but it is equally clear that the reporting of the looting is somewhat more righteous than it probably should be.
What is looting? Is it the taking of property after a disaster? If so, then was it looting when some World Trade Center evacuees on 9/11 broke into soda machines and distributed water to people in the stairways? What about when civilians took water trucks in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina and drove around neighborhoods distributing clean water? Where is the line?
The one consensus seems to be what I call the “plasma TV test.” If people are taking TVs, then that, we can all agree, is probably looting. Especially if they are fancy TVs! You see this pattern after most big disasters. First comes the catastrophe, then comes TV people talking about the generalized fear of looting—then comes a strange and disconcerting looting montage: footage of people carrying groceries out of stores, hearsay about violence and, finally, reports of stolen plasma TVs.
Here is one of the many plasma-TV stories to come out of Chile. (Notice the photo, which features a disheveled and frightened young man carrying…diapers.)
As I’ve written before, looting reports usually turn out to be exaggerated after most disasters. Looting happens, and it is damaging to the relief effort and the social fabric, but it rarely represents more than a drop in the bucket compared to the damage inflicted by the disaster itself.
As Ilan smartly pointed out in a comment to the previous post, we just don’t know much about disaster looting. What we do know is mostly from the U.S., which may or may not be relevant in this case. The scant research that has been done outside the U.S. suggests that it only happens in a major way when three other pre-existing conditions are met:
1. Dramatic disparity between rich and poor.
2. High levels of petty crime and gang activity.
3. An ineffective and corrupt police force.
We will one day (hopefully) get better information about what happened in the streets after Chile’s earthquake. Until then, my strategy is to listen to all the reports I hear with one question in the back of my mind: “How do you know that?” In other words, did you see it?
For example, when reading this Washington Post story today (which also includes the plasma TV claim. Check!), I had to wonder about this line:
“...the pillaging was carried out largely by poorer Chileans.”
Really? How do you know? Did you do a random sampling of the pillagers and survey them about their income levels? Or are you making that conclusion based on how the 27 looters you saw looked—what they were wearing, how they spoke, etc.? Either way is OK, but I’d love to know.
Andrés said on March 06, 2010 at 8:20 pm
It’s weird Amanda, between May and last January I gave 7 months of volunteer classes over at the District Jail in my city and it gave me a different perspective on many matters. For the most part I had always jugded people that stole… dunno, whatever… and judged burglars and thieves just cause they were!... Then somebody calls me and tells me if I would like to give a lecture to these guys since they’re trying to somehow show them a different perspective on life other than a life of crime (you see, they’ve been stealing since they were kids, as did their parents, as did their grandparents, and so on..), so I go, and find out that there are amazing people, “poor” people for the bigger part and then I realize a single lecture won’t just cut it, so I deviced this program and I come to teach them art and traditional animation out of all things… and after a while they start opening their hearts to me and I start to hear their stories.. why did they steal? ... And the most recurring stories (they weren’t trying to convince me of anything, just the way they told them, so I’ve thought) are mostly about how they need to pay their mom’s housing rent in a little room in a tough neighborhood, or getting money to buy one sandwich for their 8 year old friend, or buying clothes for their kids, and yes.. you get the answer: it was for drugs, or food, or booz, or shoes… like, everything into one same package, and it makes you realize… whatever it is they’re stealing it’s just because it’s.. well… life!
yes, commodities, food, blankets, ok… but plasma TV’s.. so what if people are stealing TV’s? what do they need a TV for? Life! As sick as it may seem to narrow it to that… it is what it is… people on poorer cities in LatinAmerica on the pacific coast may not have enough money to feed their children throughout the entire year.. but a huge part of them will have the biggest plasma TV’s, the biggest radio systems and sometimes amazing cellphones… so what’s that all about?.. just like this article I read from you on TIME MAG: It’s just plain social behaviour.
Why do people steal? Loot? They want food, comfort, clothes, drugs, booz, TV’s… a Life! A life they can claim as their own on our money-ridden society.. It is what it is… Should it b different? Perhaps.. Which way should we be inclined to? Won’t say democracy, nor socialism, nor comunism… but what about just plain human dignity?
Danny Coburn said on March 15, 2010 at 9:30 am
I am trying to find an article by you called Risk that appeared in Time on August 21, 2006 Vol. 168, Iss 8; page 22.
I am having a hard time locating it. Sorry to ask but my teacher requires that I read it. I am google dependent at the moment. Thanks. Danny
John Sterling said on August 02, 2010 at 9:17 pm
Seriously… why do people loot? Did you see the streets in the footage? I don’t think that all that trash was the result from looting. It was obviously a “not-so-nice” place to live. Commercialism brings out the worst in all of us.
One thing that surprises me. Why were all the looters so cool about lying down to be arrested?
Jonathan Brams said on August 15, 2010 at 10:04 am
When people they are just desperate. desperate people do desperate things.
Sandy Smith said on September 14, 2010 at 4:19 pm
I think people really get desperate and decide to loot, of coarse it’s not right at all but some people forget to think before they go on with their actions going on impulse.
pewter said on September 22, 2010 at 3:01 pm
Strange and unbelievable. I don’t know either way. I do think looting is happening, but then again I am wrong as the reporting of looting is there. Anyways, the behavior is totally outrageous. Very poor conduct.
Tony said on December 03, 2010 at 3:41 pm
The extremes of the classes are mostly to contribute in my opinion. You almost can’t blame them for looting.
Rika said on February 15, 2011 at 1:08 pm
Because they deal nothing better. As far the humanity has come…
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Olga said on February 15, 2011 at 1:12 pm
I don´t know what happens in our world! I can´t understand why people do such things.
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Stan said on August 26, 2011 at 10:44 am
People want something for free, it happened in London not so long ago!
Demian Faulkner said on August 30, 2011 at 7:19 pm
It’s interesting to view this article again in light of the recent riots and looting in London. I’m not sure an inept and corrupt police force can be blamed, but the inequality between rich and poor is definitely a factor. Generations of people unemployed gradually gaining in resentment all the while large TVs, cars, jewelry are paraded in their faces as the new ‘normal’. It’s not an acceptable reaction to their situation, but I can see how it happens.
Lucie said on September 11, 2011 at 3:18 am
I find it amazing that when the neighborhood most needs support, there ends up being more of those who want to take then give.
Lucie said on September 11, 2011 at 3:20 am
A great example is what happened in London a few weeks ago. This was a clear time to protect the community and not go out and make it worse. Shame on those who did that.