As a followup to the last current events issue I posted…
Imagine that you had a secret about yourself that you were afraid would get out – perhaps it’s something that you haven’t yet worked up the courage to tell your friends or your parents. Perhaps you feel that you’ll be shunned or rejected because of this secret. Now imagine that someone close to you put it on blast for the world to hear. This is what happened to Tyler Clementi.
Rutgers University Freshman Tyler Clementi recently committed suicide by jumping off a bridge. It appears that he did this because his sex life was exposed on the internet – via his roommate. He was not openly gay, and allegedly, his roommate and one of his roommate’s friends secretly filmed and posted a sexual encounter, without his consent, that he had with another man. This invasion of his privacy appears to have led to his suicide. You can read more about it at EDGEBoston.
Unfortunately, he is not the first person who has been driven to extremes due to such cases of cyber-bullying. As a person who has watched, and been a part of, the rise of the internet, I’ve noticed that more and more people seem to be lured in by the anonymity that the internet seemingly provides. They feel that they can commit hateful acts, say horrible things, or behave in ways other than they would “in reality” because they can hide behind their computer screens. And, I’m sad to say, Tyler Clementi probably won’t be the last victim of such behavior until we, as a society, deal more effectively with bigotry and the internet.
This sort of case raises a whole set of issues:
- What should the punishment be for this if any?
- Is this a “hate” crime or a “bias” crime – or is it simply an invasion of privacy?
- Regardless, should crimes against minority groups be considered worse than “normal” crimes?
- What could people or schools do to prevent such things from happening in the future?
Have you ever experienced “cyber-bullying” or known of anyone else who has? What, if anything, should be done about this phenomenon?
I think this is a common issue, I’ve heard about it alot on the news lately. I think that people say a lot of things online that they would never say in person.
It’s true, this is happening more and more. I’ve even noticed when I’m on facebook, people being hateful to each other and blurting gossip for the world to see. I believe there really should be a punishment for incidents such as this. That’s just pushing it too far, and I’m sure they were aware of that.
I think that cyber-bullying is awful. The internet is a privilege that we have been lucky enough to have, but some people are abusing this privilege and using it for the wrong reasons. I’ve heard different cases of this, but most of them have come out of high school. People don’t understand how much damage they are doing when bullying a peer. Some people can just shake it off, but others (like Tyler) can’t take that kind of abuse. You have no idea what you can drive a person to do, so before you decide to make fun of someone or say something bad about them, make sure you’re ready to live with the consequences that could occur.
This story is sad, but ridiculous at the same time. There is nothing wrong with being gay, but there IS something wrong with making gays feel that it’s wrong. I find it ridiculous that someone would take their own life because people found out who they really were. Yes, that situation would be extremely hurtful and embarrassing, but it’s definitely not worth ending life.
I think that the internet can breed bullies and allow them to develop without consequence. There are a lot of consequences for “cyber-bullying” but teens and other victims don’t always take action. I think there are enough consequences in place and it is up to the victim to take action.
I think this definitely classifies as a hate crime. If the boy had been straight, his roommate would have never filmed him and shared it with anyone, as no one would be shocked or really even care to know about it. It really is not his business whether or not the boy is gay; it doesn’t affect his life. Besides, isn’t it illegal to videotape someone without their permission?
This is a huge invasion of privacy. No one has the right to just share information about someone else without permission. The fact that Clementi wasn’t openly gay makes it all the worse. He was mortified i’m sure. I don’t think that this is a huge crime but rather morally wrong. Cyber bullying is not something that can be stopped over night. You’re going to have immature teens and adults in life.
I do not think that this is exactly a “hate” crime. I would consider to to be more along the lines of an invasion of privacy because his roommate didn’t necessarily post the video out of hate. I also do not think that there is really anything that schools can do to prevent such actions as “cyber-bullying.” I personally have never experience such situations online, nor have I known of any of my friends being bullied online. There should be a punishment, but I do not think that it should be extreme, such as jail.
I personally have not experienced cyber bullying and haven’t met any one who has. People take advantage of the internet as a way to avoid confrontation, but still be able to expose or start drama. People have secrets for a reason, mainly because they don’t want to be judged for their “mistakes”. And for one’s secret to be exposed without their permission can be devastating. We need to find a way to help the victims of cyber bullying and punishment for the bullies.
Someone’s business that is meant to be private should stay that way, but no matter what happens the outcome should never result in suicide. Tyler’s roommate is going to have to live with the guilt that he led to Tyler’s death, so this death affects everyone’s life.
This tragic event is very awful but is a very common thing that happens today in this society. People who think they are better than everyone else think they can do things like this to humiliate another to make themselves feel better. In my opinion the person responisble for this, or the one who led him to commit suicide should be held accountability for it. If this never hit the internet then none of this would have happened. If Tyler Clementi didn’t even tell his friends or family what would give his roommate the right to post it all over the internet. Of course something like jumping over a bridge would come about.
This is a common issue and I don’t know why I mean everyone is different and like different things so why can’t get over someone being different. So I think this is awful and every one should just accept it.
There should definitely be a punishment for the room-mate, because even though he did not push him off the bridge physically, his actions of privacy invasion and embarrassment mentally provoked the actions.
This is a very sad issue. Why would they even look and record what he is doing with someone else. If it’s not your business then just stay out of it. They should be punished for doing this, however there are people in the world that do this all the time and no one ever gets punished for doing things like this. It is not fair to people that their business is being spread by people that have nothing to do with it. I don’t even see how they thought it was funny, not even the littlest bit. It’s just plain rude, i mean don’t abuse the privilege of using the internet. If he wanted everyone to know that he was gay, then he would have told them himself. How would the person feel if it were them and someone else doing that them, i know that they probably wouldn’t like it. Just don’t do stupid things like this especially if it doesn’t involve you. Use common sense and think about things before you do it. I know that now that this boy is dead, his room mate (the one that recorded him) feels terrible about doing something like this, especially now that he is dead and killed himself because of what his “friend” did.
I think that cyber-bulling affects no only homosexuals, but a lot of different people as well. It disgusts me that someone can make fun of someone else just because they are different. I believe that the person responsible for uploading this video IS responsible for the suicide of Tyler Clementi. He invaded Tyler’s privacy and personal life and brought it to the public’s eye.
This is a d**n shame ! Another victim of cyber bulling. You never know what people went through in their life. You never know what their psychological state of being is. Being in the closet as a male is probably the hardest thing for a guy to keep in the closet. To live up as a “man” in the high school society is hard when your forced to do things just to keep your rep. Like, having sex with girls…etc. It needs to be a harsher punishment for this !
He should be charged with violation of privacy because no one should show other peoples things on the net because they don’t realize how much damage that can cause. I agree with people who say that the internet is a privilege and people abuse it. I honestly think that he should of known better than to post something because the thinks it is funny. People use the internet is a wall and that you can do and say things on the internet but don’t have the guts to say it in their face.
Personal space.. like seriously. It is horrible that people are doing this but if you think about it, a lot of people have done cyber-bullying. It is so sad to think about that someone has to kill themselves because of being bullied. I wonder how that guy feels that what he did to the Tyler caused him to kill himself. It is just horrible
I feel like there should a punishment for this kind of behavior from his roommate. He should not have taped Tyler Clementi kissing another guy and put this video online. This may not be a case of bullying, but he should have a consequence for not having permission from Tyler. It was none of his friends business to catch him making out with another guy knowing that he was not open about his relationship. If someone wants to keep their relationship business secret then people should not try and ruin someones life over something like this. The whole story was an invasion of his privacy and he was worried about what everyone would think so he committed suicide. People should respect others personal relationship and not let things bother them. There is no excuse for this behavior from his friend now he has a guilty conscious, but it is his own fault!
It is always terrible when people commit suicide, but it is even more terrible when that suicide was caused by the actions of someone else. Tyler’s death is a perfect example of this. If it weren’t for his roommate posting this for all the world to see, he’d still be alive.
Cyber-bullying is a horrible thing and those that commit it are horrible people, thats what it comes down to. The people that commit this crime deserve to be punished to the full extent of the law and possibly further than that.
This is also a part of a larger societal problem where we feel the need to ostracize people that are different than them.
I think that what was done to Tyler was disturbing and unfair. That is his business and no one should have exposed him like that. I believe the punishment should be prison time. I don’t know how much time the person should get though. I think this is a hate crime and invasion of privacy b/c everyone has a personal life and that should have been respected. A crime is a crime and both should be taken to the fullest instant. To prevent crimes like this from happening in the future people should be more understanding and learn how to accept a person.