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Teen perspective: bullying Do you remember getting bullied as a teenager? Dreading going to school because you were the “nerd” or the “ugly fat girl”. You'd get tortured by the jocks and tormented by the popular cheerleaders. But the second you that 3 o'clock bell rang you were gone. You got to hang with friends and for the most part forget about it and be well…happy. Now imagine having those jocks and cheerleaders following you everywhere you go, but having no face or name to the horrible attacks. Imagine sitting in your living room with your family, happily chatting with friends on Facebook, and scrolling through your dashboard on Tumblr sharing pictures of your favorite bands members and television programs, when it happens…you get the message…the message. From someone you don't know. Someone horrible hiding their face behind a computer screen or cell phone. Someone who enjoys making you hurt but doesn't have enough courage to take responsibly for their crude actions. Your heart is racing in disbelief, wondering what you did wrong to…deserve that. What do you do? Your first reaction is to retaliate, right? Fight back and defend yourself. Only problem is that you have no clue who you're talking to. You have nothing against them, yet they seem to know every detail about you. What do you do? Cyberbullying has proven to be one of the most destructive forms of bullying in recent decades. The Internet is easy access for the bull to destroy his/her victim without the guilt of watching them suffer. You start letting the messages get to you. It's been at least 6 months since it started. So many people every day telling you the same thing. “You are worthless, fat, stupid, ugly, and no one likes you.” You go away for a weekend of fun. You finally get home, and your whole world crashing around you the second your phone connects to the WIFI. Hundreds of messages explode your phone from random people on Facebook and anonymous ask on Tumblr. Not one nice or positive, just pure hatred. You've already broken down, every night, putting a new cut or burn on your body for every insult. You get to the last, longest message. The person repeatedly tells you to kill yourself. Suicide. The outcome or way out that has crossing your mind daily. You finally get to the end. This message is different though. It's signed. You cry even harder than before. Your worst nightmare. Your bully, the one who started all this, just happens to be…your best friend. What her “best friend” didn't realize was how much mental and physical pain she was causing; and it's too late to apologize now. According to recent studies, cyberbullying victims are nine times more likely to commit suicide. Not many people realize the extreme effects it has on teenagers nowadays. Words hurt. Even I have scars to prove it. Not every story has to end like this. Win the war. Be a survivor and be there for the next person to join the battlefield. I see humans not humanity, and a society that is falling apart. Change that. By Maddie McMullen |
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Post date: 2015-03-18 18:52:07 Post date GMT: 2015-03-18 22:52:07 Post modified date: 2015-03-25 13:07:24 Post modified date GMT: 2015-03-25 17:07:24 |
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