“Justice by own handle” is the motto of Cristian Norberto Heidenreich, better known as “BiciBandido”his name tiktokero and on youtube.
He has 12,000 followers on Instagram and 192,000 on TikTok. But he went viral especially after a video that compiles his actions; among them: breaking the side mirrors of badly parked cars or hitting them with a chain on the hood, as well as rebuking and insulting drivers in violation.
The negative reactions on social networks had more weight than the positive ones: “Bicibandido” himself began to receive insults and threats, even while filming his videos.
He was forced to stop -or postpone, who knows- his “crusade” against those who violate traffic rules, especially against cyclists.
Beyond the debate about who is for or against this character, it is worth pausing to rethink several axes that run through this anecdotal fact: the methodology of the campaigns, the effectiveness of citizen participation, the reactions of some people and, especially, the degree of weariness of a large part of society.
The “Bombita” played by Ricardo Darín in wild tales it is cathartic and represents us in various aspects. But the character (who unfairly explodes the tow truck that takes his car, the fault of the creepy bureaucratic system) ends up like any other son of a neighbor in such cases: prisoner.
The justice of the “BiciBandido” claim is clear, but also the violent reaction that their own reactions arouse, which in the end are also illegal.
In this sense, the discussion between the parties largely emulates the discourses of irrational confrontation that prevail in Argentine society and that also come down from the political arena.
It demonstrates the scarce conditions for dialogue, which explains the breach of the social contract that we have suffered for a long time in the country.
On the other hand, not only the claim loses validity when it is made in this way, but also its justifications. Therefore, the “BiciBandido” is still a lost opportunity to amend the tremendous chaos, selfishness and lack of solidarity that are experienced in the streets, on a daily basis.
Would the claim have been more effective if, for example, they painted their mirror with a washable spray instead of breaking it? It is uchronic, but it could have worked, even in the polemic, without dissipating the justice of the action so much.
Last but not least, the “BiciBandido” is still the reflection of people who are already fed up, and with good reason. Tired of dealing with animals at the wheel, with noisy neighbors, with pedestrians who litter, with those who increase prices or with officials who ask us to make all the effort that they will never do.
It is in these contexts when the limits are blurred, when the parameters to determine the degree of legality of the actions with which we respond to all these daily injustices fall.
It is when the dilemma of whether we continue to believe in the system or if we become “Bombita” Darín appears. The problem is that the answer to that usually comes unexpectedly.
It pays to be smart enough so that those are not the only two options.