I. There’s a quote from the movie “The Matrix Reloaded” where Seraph says,

“You do not truly know someone until you fight them.”

The idea here is that when placed in a moment of crisis, people will be forced to reveal their true character.

So here’s a question for you, the reader:

Why has there been no looting in Japan?

We saw it post Hurricane Katrina.

We saw it in Haiti after the earthquake in early 2010.

We definitely saw it 20 years ago during the LA riots (remember Rodney King?):

So why not Japan? What makes the Japanese so culturally dissimilar? Why do they behave so differently during their time of crisis?

II. Take a look at this image. What’s happening in the photos? The caption of the black woman says she’s “looting,” while the white people are merely “finding.” Which is it? Why or why not?

Image Credit:http://www.snopes.com/katrina/photos/looters.asp

III. Which brings me to another article I spotted on The New York Times, “The Tire Iron and the Tamale.” No, it’s not about looting. It’s about a family of Mexican immigrants who helped the author fix his flat tire. His premise? Basically, that Mexican immigrants are good, selfless people, while Americans are the opposite. Keep in mind that the author is Non-Latino.

Do you agree with the author? Why or why not?

IV. As a society, we use stereotypes to frame our perceptions of people by gender, race, employment, etc., and for good reason: Heuristics help us simplify and make sense of the world.

I chose these examples because they challenge what we think we know. At the end of the day, people are incredibly complex, and this serves as a reminder to marketers to re-think their one-size-fits-all strategies.

BONUS: Check out this old spot from The Guardian, highly regarded as a classic by many marketers.

Further reading:

There Are Reasons Why Japanese Earthquake Looters Are MIA – Washington Examiner

photo credit: main image (looters), japanitup.com