Safety Culture Redefined
Janet Kuypers
1/26/25
Seeing this sign repeatedly,
I watched tennis’ Australian Open matches for weeks—
Now, I know that in this millennia
The Capitalist dollar reigns supreme;
Corporations pay to plaster their logo
Anywhere and everywhere for the
Blinded lemmings to blankly absorb—
So, I never stopped to think of the phrases plastered on
Everything to make a quick buck.
But I had to stop when the phrase
“Safety Culture”, and nothing else,
Repeated ad infinitum on the courts.
In the back of my mind I assumed
This was an Australian business
About maybe safety standards at
Work, or safety equipment, some-
thing innocuous about staying
Safe in the workplace, especially
If everyone seems hyper-psyched
To sue their corporate overlords
If they’re ever injured at work.
Finally letting these corporate words sink into my head
(Just as they wanted, but for all the
Wrong reasons), I thought about
The mentality of younger gen-
erations being so sheltered by
Their mommies and daddies from
Anything that may offend them;
Maybe this “safety culture” has
Raised younglings to not have to
Face any hardships, you know,
So as to not bruise their precious
Egos. Then again, maybe
“Safety culture” refers to the void
Democrats felt after the recent
Polls shifting away from them,
Coupled with their fear for their
Safety, whether they be black, gay,
Female, or anything that isn’t a
White supremacist male.
It sounds trifling of me, to think that these two words
Could be so weighted, and that our
Political system could impose such
Frightening overtones on so many.
So, I asked someone who voted for
Trump (and isn’t a republican) if
People on the right get this scared
When someone on the left is voted
Into office... And they said, yes. So
I had to ask what they’re afraid of,
And they said, they’re afraid of them taking our guns.
They’re afraid as parents of losing
Autonomy over their children,
When some schools will help kids
Who want sex changes— without
Even notifying the parents. They
Fear the family will fall apart as
America knows it when liberals
Take over the Oval Office. And
I thought,
Hmmm.
This culture we live in now, it
Seems so ... unsafe. But is it really.
Maybe I shouldn’t be so flippant,
My problem is that gender or not,
Race or not, sexual leanings or not,
Maybe I’ve been cushioned away
From the real pain others feel. And
Maybe others do struggle with this,
And that’s what I keep hearing—
For in our day-to-day lives, we live
In this kind of mind-oblivion, this
Puffy-cloud stroll though all the
Minutiae that’s out there, but it
Doesn’t need to affect us, so just
Put those blinders back on and
Everything will be just fine. And
That’s what we American do—
Our day-to-day life has enough
Issues than to worry about what
Others go though. When it comes
Down to it, isn’t that how it works.
So yes, it’s true, I see my rights removed first hand, but
What sucks is to sometimes see the
Uphill battles others face with the
Choices that we seem to think make
Sense for us. Us versus them.
We’re not supposed to think of things
On those terms, this is the land of the
Free, or so they say, but that is what
We do. We’ve segregated ourselves,
Stare at our tiny screens for the news
We choose to pay attention to, and get
Angry when everyone else isn’t as
Enlightened as us. But maybe that’s
Our problem: we’ve chosen our
Narrow view and get too upset when
Others try to burst the tiny bubble
We’ve chosen to surround ourselves
In. In doing so, we forgot to listen.
I hear there’s a lot outside our little
Bubbles, for at this point I’m still
Stuck thinking about those two little
Words. Safety culture. I’m left
Questioning my culture, and it makes
Me wonder where that safety really is.
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