My conclusion the past 40 years since I heard of the story was society was uncaring about crime in the neighborhood and would look the other way and not get involved. Apathy in big cities especially New York. But you are right , I am not sure of the agenda.
According to a recent exposé Police Commissioner Michael Murphy, fearing that the killing of Kitty Genovese might derail efforts on the Civil Rights front met with the Metropolitan Editor of the New York Times, A.M. Rosenthal, and told him of his concerns . . . and stressed the behavior of the fictional 38 Eye-witnesses who failed to call the police during the attack, rape, and murder of Kitty Genovese by this guy:
Can you see a Liberal agenda? Rosenthal assigned reporter Martin Gansberg to interview Murphy and write a story about the witnesses's failures to call the police during the attack. Gansberg based his entire story on that interview and checked NOTHING by talking to any of the so-called witnesses. . . Even going so far as quoting an anonymous witness as saying "I just didn't want to get involved."
This certainly deflected public attention from the racial facts of the crime to the horror of neighborly apathy. . .