Several weeks after Rutgers University student Tyler Clementi's tragic suicide, people are still debating the takeaway from the terrible story. College students around the country are writing about Clementi in their campus newspapers, expressing their takes on the lessons their campuses should learn. Rutgers' own Daily Targum chimed in this week with a controversial editorial that essentially blamed the media for making too much of the Clementi story instead of letting the campus mourn him in a more private fashion. The editors write:
The focal point of Clementi's tragic death should have been a boy's inability to deal with the hardships of life. And yet the news and certain organizations picked this up and carried it into the ranks of general causes for major social groups - for their profit...It is disappointing that everyone from news to celebrities picked up the story. Actress Brittany Snow and actor Neil Patrick-Harris are just two of the many celebrities belittling Clementi's death - forcing his remembrance into a cause rather than a proper mourning.
The editors believe that it's better to "mourn for Clementi, and just for him, rather than using him as a martyr for a cause that has yet to be proven." But Towleroad's Andrew Belonsky maintains that "activists and media would have acted irresponsibly had we let Clementi's death be turned into a footnote, rather than a rally for change." Moving beyond just the opinion of this one op-ed, campuses around the country are debating how Clementi's story affects their communities. Here, a sampling:
Get rid of "homophobic laws": "These teenagers are not merely victims of a few bullies from their school but victims of a political environment polluted by hazardous, hateful, and homophobic rhetoric," says Ryan M. Rossner in the Harvard Crimson. We need a broad, sweeping change because "homophobic laws and lack of proper legal protections send a message to the bullies and bullied of America that being gay is still not ok." Creating a "more tolerant and welcoming climate for all students" would be true "climate change."
Don't blame the internet for Clementi's death: "It's time for 'Generation Me' to take some responsibility," says an editorial in the Arizona Daily Wildcat. These "bullycide" stories reflect that "we let ourselves get jaded and bored, and meanness crept in to take the place of passion and interest." Let's remember that even in an age of BlackBerries, "If you hurt someone with your words or actions, intentionally or otherwise, it's on you."
We can prevent the next tragedy: We must accept that "there are daily acts of hate, bias and discrimination in lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer and transgender communities that go unnoticed or unreported," says Terri Phoenix in the University of North Carolina Daily Tar Heel. It's time to "commit to end this bigotry, shame, and harassment." This way, Clementi's death will pave the way for "more just, inclusive, welcoming and equitable campuses, communities and world."
I'm doubtful that anti-hate laws are all that effective. In their of heart of hearts, if people hate you, laws won't stop them. I say to say it, but hatred among human beings has existed for thousands of years, and for many reasons; not just sexual orientation. The Jews were hated in the Middle East before and after the founding of Israel. Universities vote on divesting their pension funds from that country, and celebrities cancel plans to visit when Israel defends itself.
Another point I hate to say, is that members of vulnerable groups need to develop thick skin to survive.
What just occurred to me is the fate of another person, the kid that Tyler was with. I don't want to know who he is, but who is helping him? And shouldn't we be thinking about him, too, even more so!
BZ.
Tyler spoke to the RA on Tues Sept 21 in the evening..according to Tyler's posts all the RA told him was to "write and email him a written paragraph about exactly what happened"..keep in mind this is right after Tyler just told him everything in person..why didnt the RA or Rutgers get him into another room right away?..its sad when a University like Rutgers responds so shamefully to a crime that has been committed on one of their students..immediate action should have been taken...most reports I read only quote the section of the post where tyler says the "RA seemed to take it seriously"..they never go into saying what the RA told Tyler to do about this crime..also have these 2 kids even been officially expelled yet by Rutgers?
A Call for More Charges in the Clementi Case
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tRfHlU4Ci88
But if so, a big apology is called for.
BZ.
The Harvard Crimson is dead on because as long as we have laws that single out gay Americans as second class citizens, bullies will assume they have the right to commit hate crimes against them, as Dharun Ravi and Molly Wei did against Tyler Clementi and that gang of homophobes in New York City did against "La Reina" and two others this past week.
The Arizona Wildcat hints at another issue --- people becoming "jaded and bored" and thus insensitive to others because of internet usage. I think that's what happened with Ravi and Wei --- they were so involved in their Internet lives that they lost sight that they were dealing with a real person when they outed Tyler Clementio.
I applaud the University of North Carolina's Daily Tar Heel for acknowledging there are "lesser" --- but still harmful --- acts of bullying and homophobia that occur every day against gay people. This goes back to the national attitude which is fed by homophobic laws that keep gay people as second class citizens.
The students responsible should be gone.
There is no room for h8tred of any kind in a civil society.
They obviously had no moral compass that flagged this as a very private situation that should be left alone. They better not get off scot-free.
wow, you wonder how this whole tragedy could have happened at rutgers with that kind of attitude on display?
Maybe I can't go into Tyler's head and see what he would have wanted, but how could he NOT have wanted the hate to stop? How could he have not wanted other kids to live? etc