RISE Blog | How to be an Active Bystander Using Euphoria

By: Lauryn Flores, Peer Educator
March 4th, 2022

We're more than halfway through the second season of HBO's exciting series, Euphoria, and we've already been through an emotional series of events. If you haven't seen it yet, Euphoria is a drama that tells the story of high schoolers who navigate through their relationships with love, sex, and, and drug addiction. 

It's safe to say that many of the things we see main character Rue and her friends doing comes along with a lot of high risk. Here, we discuss good and bad examples of bystanders intervened during the show. 👇 Warning: mentioning's of drug use and sexual harassment [Mild Season 1 Spoilers] 

Fez's Place – The Good

Fez, Rue's friend and drug dealer, is seen refusing to sell to Rue. In this scene, she becomes desperate and starts calling him names and blames her addiction on him. Fez doesn't give in and instead gently apologizes and shuts the door on her. We can see that Fez cares for her safety and doesn't enable her when he easily could have. It's clear that he feels bad but doesn't let his emotions and Rue's behavior influence his decision. He also remains calm throughout the entire interaction, something that serves as a gold standard response to aggressive outbursts from addicts. Additionally, Fez does not shame or ridicule Rue for her behaviors. 

Kitchen Scene – The Bad

In this scene, we see newcomer, Jules Vaughn, and popular East Highland High quarterback, Nate Jacobs. Nate catches Jules attending a party she's uninvited to. With a crowd of partygoers watching in the background, Nate confronts Jules. Nate proceeds to harass Jules by verbally and sexually threatening her. At this point, the entire party stops to see the drama unfold. Since no one in the crowd comes to her defense, she is forced to stand up for herself. 

As we all probably noticed, the crowd wasn't doing a great job of intervening. What could they have done to defend her? Here are some ways they could have helped:

• Pretend to be her friend, ask her to join you, and physically lead her out of the situation 
• Confront the aggressor and tell them to back off 
• Distract the aggressor by telling them their attention is needed elsewhere 

As we saw, it can be difficult to step in for someone, especially when the situation could potentially become dangerous. It is important to assess every situation and determine risk. NEVER put yourself in a life-threatening situation. 

If you or someone you know is experiencing trouble with substance abuse, RISE has several resources available for students. Additionally, RISE has a great program designed for to provide holistic education for students over substance abuse. It is free for students who decide to attend on their own. 

Texas Tech 24/7/365 Crisis Helpline | 806.742.5555

Texas Tech On-Campus Police Department | 806.742.3931

Lubbock Police Department | 806.775.2816

Student Health Services / Student Counseling Center | 806.743.2122

RISE (Risk Intervention & Safety Education | 806.742.2110

Texas Tech Title IX Office | 806.834.1949

Voice of Hope Lubbock Rape Crisis Center | 806.763.3232

Women's Protective Services | 806.747.6491

 

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