Cyber Bullying
I found the incident of Tyler’s suicide to be very disturbing. The situation that resulted to the Tyler’s death and the position adopted by the court creates serious controversies. It is distressing to not that cyber bullying have deadly consequences. Dharun Ravi’s actions are entirely attributable to the Tyler’s death. His problem with his roommate being gay led to a suicidal death. Ravi spied on Tyler as he engaged in sexual affairs with his male friend. He used social sites to encourage his friends to set up their messaging service to watch Tyler’s next sexual encounter. It is indisputable that the Ravi’s actions motivated Tyler’s suicidal activity because the victim was found dead in the Hudson River two days after realizing he was being spied. It is surprising to note that a plan that Ravi thought could have been a simple game led to loss of life and made Ravi face a ten years imprisonment (ABC News 1). This highlights that the idea of cyber bullying may have severe consequences to our society. Explaining the controversy surrounding this incident is rather challenging because the situation takes various dimensions.
I am entirely disturbed to realize that cyber bullying is detrimentally affecting the society, yet individuals are ignorant on the consequences of this practice. Initially, one gets disturbed to identify that Ravi is entirely not at ease to learn that his roommate is gay. Similarly, the Tyler lacks the strength of facing social pressures, which makes him consider suicide as the only option of handling his problem. In respect to such circumstances, it is clear that the society is threatened. One will concur with me that the idea of presence of diverse sexual orientations is real in the contemporary society. The current generation comprise of communities of straight individuals, gays and bisexuals among others. In essence, Tyler’s incidence marks an example of the situation at the ground. I am grieved to learn that the society will continue to suffer because of homophobic perceptions. Realizing the effect of cyber bullying and establishing feasible corrective strategies is essential in building a health community.
The topic prompted me into re-evaluate the idea of cyber bullying from a critical and diverse perspective. Katz (8) defines bullying as an aggressive action assumed by a person and when executed repeatedly has the potential of creating a power differential. Cyber bullying regards to such actions that are conducted through the model of electronic text. Tyler’s event highlights that cyber has the potential of assuming diverse dimensions. It is indisputable that bullying occurs through various aspects of life and in many places in the entire world. According to Kowalski, Sue and Patricia (29), the society is at high risk suffering the consequences of bullying because the problem becoming more sophisticated as technology develops. Technology development is creating new, convenient and safer avenues for executing bullying. It is shocking to learn that the effect of such developments is already noticeable in the society. Katz (49) asserts that the current generation is living in an environment in which social networking is part of daily life and internet malice is a real threat. Particularly, cyber bullying is presently a common practice experienced in schools especially in universities and colleges. The society should prioritize the need of addressing this concern comprehensively. For example, educating the community about the atrocious consequences of cyber bullying would be effective in minimizing tragic cases such as the one witnessed in Tyler’s incident. Exposing the horror of internet bullying will enable the current generation understand that the practice can result to deadly consequences.
I am disturbed to learn that technology development has introduced a new dimension to the aspect of bullying. In presence of internet, it is clear that physical separation of the parties cannot limit the frequency, depth and the scope of harm experienced from the practice. Individuals should learn that once something is online, any person could frequently access it at any time. The community should also learn that invading into someone’s privacy by posting images or videos online could result to serious consequences including a jail time (ABC News 1). This feeling is motivated by the consideration that Ravi is likely to have engaged into destructive actions out of ignorance. Bullying is unethical and unacceptable; however, individuals often engage in it without their consent. One can cause pain although his or her intentions may not have targeted causing the same. Chances are high that Ravi learnt of the implications of his actions with surprise. One will concur with me that Ravi’s main intention was not to hurt Tyler, but he needed to share a sport of mockery and enjoy the fun with his online friends. Unfortunately, he was not aware of the consequences that would follow. Consequently, the need of enlightening the society in order to eliminate ignorance becomes essential.
Furthermore, the Tyler’s incident involves some deeper issues that we should not ignore. Initially, it is certain that individuals need to be empowered to make them not feel embarrassed for being gay. This is especially necessary to the youths and teenagers who have low esteem of facing the challenge associated with the state. While the society needs to change its perception towards individuals who are gay, we need to ensure that the victims are bold enough to overcome exploitive incidences. Kowalski, Sue and Patricia (35) optimistically argue that eliminating the bullies and shame may be challenging; however, communal effort can eventually result to a healthy environment for our kids. The scholar guides that the society should encourage gay adults to come out and address the youths sharing with them their experiences while motivating them to accept their state. The topic has taught me the need of embracing fairness and tolerance. Absence of these virtues is attributable to the Tyler’s death. Ravi who is homophobic failed to acknowledge and tolerate the condition of his roommate. Furthermore, he exposes Tyler to the public without evaluating the consequences of doing the same. Although Ravi disliked the state of his roommate, his actions were unfair. In essence, exposing him to the public attracted no benefits to either of them. Embracing tolerance will foster inclusiveness, which is essential in the contemporary society that is extensively diverse.
Conclusively, the topic of cyber bullying is highly relevant in the contemporary world. Tyler’s incident has challenged me to visualize the real implication of the cyber bullying. Through the topic, I have learnt that cyber bullying is detrimental and can take diverse dimensions. Surprisingly, one can cause severe harm and face serious consequences because of ignorance. This means that we need to be conscious about our activities especially when distributing information through social sites. Particularly, there is need of empowering the society with essential skills for avoiding cyber bullying. Tyler’s incident should motivate us into working towards establishing effective strategies for addressing cyber bullying.
Works cited
ABC News. 20/20 from ABC News: Rutgers Webcam Spying Scandal, (2012). Web https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zbgWcuWxe_k
Katz, Adrienne. Cyberbullying and E-Safety: What Educators and Other Professionals Need to Know. London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2012. Print.
Kowalski, Robin M, Sue Limber, and Patricia W. Agatston. Cyberbullying: Bullying in the Digital Age. Malden, MA: Wiley-Blackwell, 2012. Print.
