Tag Archives: bullying

Sikh Woman Stands Up To Online Bullying About Her Facial Hair (And Gets Apology)

Jessica WakemanSeptember 27, 2012 //
I'm A Sikh Woman
A Sikh woman explains how her faith is feminist. Read More »
  • Recently, a Sikh woman named Balpreet Kaur learned a photo of herself  had been posted on the “Funny” section of the website Reddit, where users mocked her facial hair, outfit and turban.  So she actually joined the comment thread to respond directly to the bullies to explain to them what’s what. “I realize that my gender is often confused and I look different than most women,” Kaur wrote. “However, baptized Sikhs believe in the sacredness of this body – it is a gift that has been given to us by the Divine Being (which is genderless, actually) and must keep it intact as a submission to the divine will.” And then the sincere apologies came. You mean to tell me something nice happened on the Internet?!?!  [Guardian UK]
  • Female editors-in-chief earn $15K less on average than men do, according to a compensation study from Folio magazine. [The Atlantic Wire] Keep reading »

Girl Talk: The Girls In The Clique (And How I Accidentally Flashed Them)

Kate FridkisJuly 10, 2012 //
Friends We Need
Six types of friends every woman needs. Read More »
Childhood Frenemies
The crappy friends we once thought were awesome. Read More »
College Friendships
campus confidential
Friendships at college aren't about having one big clique. Read More »

I didn’t know girls still did cliques at this age. I mean, I guess I could’ve figured it out, but I didn’t really give it much thought.

I was homeschooled, so I missed a lot of that stuff, which I’ve always felt lucky for. But no one can miss all of it.

It takes about two seconds of remembering to whip me back in time to the girls’ bathroom at the synagogue, where I am engaged in that most classic and venerable of traditions: crying helplessly, locked in a stall. It is my first day of Hebrew High School. I’m thirteen, and none of the other girls will talk to me. It’s not just implied, it’s outright. They cross the room to avoid me and then cluster together, whispering. Keep reading »

I Went Camping, And All I Got Was Harassed By The Police

Julie GersteinJuly 5, 2012 //
Street Harassment
How do you respond? Read More »
Cops Warn Vs. Skirts
skirt photo
NYC police warned women not to wear skirts to avoid a serial rapist. Read More »
Anti-Bullying Vid
Jonah Mowry's anti-bullying video. Watch »

There is a saying by artist Barbara Krueger Jenny Holzer that “abuse of power comes as no surprise,” and wow, was that true this weekend, when my friends and I went camping and got harassed by cops not once, but three times.

Contrary to popular opinion, bullying isn’t something that just happens to kids on a playground — adults can bully, too. You may have run into a bully in your office, or in your apartment building — someone who feels the need to suppress and oppress in order to feel better about themselves. Sometimes those people are your coworkers, or neighbors.

But sometimes those people are cops.

Keep reading »

Tyler Clementi’s Ex-Roommate Dharun Ravi Sentenced To 30 Days In Jail

Jessica WakemanMay 21, 2012 //
tyler clementi photo

“I do believe he acted out of colossal insensitivity.” 

This was the judge who presided over the trial of Dharun Ravi, the former Rutgers University student who was convicted in March with a bias crime (hate crime) for spying on his roommate, Tyler Clementi (in the pic), with a web cam while Clementi had gay sex. When Clementi discovered that he was being spied on and “outed” to other Rutgers students, he committed suicide.

Today, Dharun Ravi was sentenced to 30 days in jail and possible deportation. (His family immigrated from India.) Update: Ravi is also required to serve 300 hours of community service, attend a counseling program for cyberbullying, and service three years probation. The sentencing brings to an end to an incident that has had a coalescing affect on the national conversation about bullying. Keep reading »

Model Commits Suicide After Internet Trolls Attack

Jessica WakemanApril 9, 2012 //
Claudia Boerner photo

Bullying: it’s not just for kids. Claudia Boerner, 32, British model from a competitive cooking TV show, committed suicide recently, apparently because she being viciously attacked by Internet trolls. Trolls trashed Claudia’s appearance, ridiculed her “fake boobs,” and accused her of being an attention-seeking show-off on “The Perfect Dinner,” a cooking competition that airs in Germany.  A message on show’s website said they were shocked by her death and said Claudia Boerner “struck us as a friendly, open-minded young woman.”

It just goes to show all of us that no matter how someone presents herself or himself to the world, there is more going on underneath. You never know how a person may take your hurtful words. And, yes, writing nasty comments about people on the Internet — even absolute strangers — is bullying.  [Daily Mail UK]

It’s On: The Battle Over The “Bully” Rating Heads To Washington

The Mary SueMarch 16, 2012 //

The public outcry over the harsh R rating for the documentary Bully has hit a new level and headed straight to the Washington, D.C., headquarters of the people who granted that rating, the Motion Picture Association of America. In an attempt to quell criticism over the rating — which prevents the people who need to see this movie from seeing without adult supervision —the MPAA held a screening and panel discussion to try to convince the highly-influential guests who were invited (including Congressional Representatives) why the R rating was sound. The opposite happened, and now the MPAA is under fire on its own turf. Read more…

Dharun Ravi, Roommate Of Gay Rutgers Student Tyler Clementi, Found Guilty Of Hate Crimes

Jessica WakemanMarch 16, 2012 //
Tyler Clementi's Story
tyler clementi photo
18-year-old Tyler Clementi committed suicide after being outed. Read More »
Hate Crimes Charges
Tyler Clementi's roommate Dharun Ravi faces hate crimes charges. Read More »
Bigots "Lost" Gay Marriage
Bigots admit they've lost the gay marriage battle in our generation. Read More »
Gay Marriage Ad
This marriage equality ad will give you chills. Watch »
Dharun Ravi tweets

Dharun Ravi, the former roommate of Tyler Clementi, a gay Rutgers University student who committed suicide, was convicted this morning of hate crimes. Twenty-year-old Ravi used a webcam set up in the dorm room they shared to spy on Clementi on several occasions, which he announced over Twitter to classmates and watched from a friend’s room. Clementi — who knew about the webcam spying, requested a room change, and had complained to an RA about his roommate — eventually jumped off the George Washington Bridge. Keep reading »

Girl Talk: I Went To Prom With My Bully

Kiri BlakeleyMarch 2, 2012 //
Bullied Celebs
These celebs were bullied. 20 Photos »
It Gets Better
Stop bullying! Buy the book! Read More »
Anti-Bullying Vid
Jonah Mowry's anti-bullying video. Watch »

Yesterday, Lady Gaga launched her anti-bullying foundation, Born This Way, at Harvard University. This got me thinking of my own days as a bullied pre-teen—and the sweet revenge I was able to exact on my young male tormenter.

Halfway through sixth grade, I switched schools. I’d been living on Cape Cod with my sister, mother, and stepfather. Then my sister and I moved to Connecticut to live with my grandmother. It was a hellishly confusing time. My mother had left for what was supposed to be a week-long trip to visit friends in California. But she decided to escape her bad marriage by simply not returning.

In the suburban oasis where my grandmother lived, I was enrolled in the local junior high. Then, just in case my 11-year-old self hadn’t suffered enough that year, a young thug by the name of David made it his life’s mission to compound my misery. Keep reading »

Today’s Lady News: 50 Percent Of Elementary School Teachers Hear Sexist Comments At School

Jessica WakemanJanuary 18, 2012 //
  • Almost 50 percent of elementary school teachers surveyed by the Gay, Lesbian, Straight Education Network (GLSEN) say they have heard sexist comments in their school. Nearly the same percentage of teachers surveyed said they heard the word “gay” frequently used in a negative way (such as “that’s so gay”). We’re talking about elementary school here, folks. [GLSEN: Playgrounds & Prejudice]
  • Samantha Garvey, a high school senior and semifinalist in the Intel Science Talent Search competition who has been living in a New York homeless shelter, will be a guest at President Obama’s State of the Union address next week. Samantha’s currently waiting to hear back from admissions at Yale and Brown. [Think Progress]
  • I’m sure you were all breathlessly waiting to hear what Jim Bob Duggar (that reality show dude who got his wife knocked up, like, 37 times) had to say about the transgender Girl Scout. [Buzzfeed] Keep reading »

Powerful Anti-Bullying Video From Teen Jonah Mowry

Amelia McDonell-ParryDecember 5, 2011 //
Bullied Celebs
These 20 celebs were bullied in high school. Read More »
Hero Of The Day
An "It Gets Better" video you have to see. Read More »
It Gets Better
Stop bullying! Buy the book! Read More »
Watch Video

I really have no words for this other than I wish I could reach through the screen and give this young man the biggest hug ever. While I am glad to hear him say — or write — that he is strong and is not going anywhere, I certainly hope his parents and school officials are aware of the bullying he faces everyday and are doing something to help him.

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