[ mood : tireddd ]
the suicide of a teenage irish
one of the articles in the latest issue of Seventeen Australia really shocked & stung me to the quick. the article is entitled "Letters to Phoebe". Phoebe Prince was an average teenager like most of us, she was a sweet 15 year-old girl who loved goofing around with her friends. what made her different is the fact that she's no longer able to enjoy her life as a highschooler, because she committed suicide after onslaught on cyber-bullying.
Phoebe moved from Ireland to Massachusetts, & as a new girl in her school, she tried her best to adapt. a guy senior named Sean was approaching her & that made her feel at ease (having somebody to rely on when you're a new in town, isn't that really good?). but that happiness didn't last for long, Sean finally got back to his sometime-girlfriend, Kayla. then Phoebe began dating another senior, Austin, but (again), it didn't go well because Austin's on-&-off girlfriend, Flannery threatened her. from that day, she's mercilessly tormented by the school's "Mean Girls" in order to make it impossible for her to remain at school. the kids started calling her "Irish slut" & "whore" on her social sites page, sending threatening text messages to her cellphone, anything to make her feel humiliated. Phoebe has tried to report the bullies to the school officials, but things could not get any better. without having nobody to help her in such depressing situation, she just wanted to end the pain she could no longer endure by killing herself.
According to what i've read in the news, 9 teenagers from
South Hadley High School have been charged with bullying Phoebe Prince. the charges ranged from statutory rape to violation of civil rights, criminal harassment, disturbance of a school assembly, & stalking (if you're interested to check out the
Massachusetts anti-bullying law, see
HERE).
"the bullying stopped when i claimed myself & proved that i wasn't afraid. a lot of it was when i was hiding when i was younger." (Randy Harrison)
we all know that bullying is never a good thing, nobody deserves such treatment as a human being or as a part of a community. but many of us haven't realized that the act of bullying isn't merely in physical; it also includes verbal or written abuse, exclusion from community, & coercion. the story above hits me quite hard because i know exactly what Phoebe felt that day, that day before she finally decided to commit suicide. i've been there before. that's why i know how it feels to be excluded from your peers, threatened, & humiliated. in such condition, how do you expect those who are bullied & live in a constant fear to fight back?
bullying is an act of violence. people who are abused have the tendency to be depressed, have low self-esteem, are at risk for mental health problems, & sometimes, just like the Phoebe's story, it also leads to a suicidal state. so whoever says bullying is the hot stuff, she/he must be demented :<
right now, i'm asking you all to take a stand against bullying. if you ever find your friends are bullied, report the action to the trusted adults, always be there for your friends, strengthen them because support is all that they need. let them know that they're not alone, let them know that they got you on their back. if you are the bullies, then it has to be stopped, not only for the sake of other people, but for your own good too. do you know that most people do bullying because they just feel insecure about themselves & the only way they can feel the superiority is by bullying or abusing other people, it makes them feel the power is in their hand. but you see, what's the use of feeling powerful if you're finally ended up in jail, rejected by your own peers, & failed a class or a relationship? the power turns into ashes.
the only way to gain the true power is to have respect; respect yourself (why do you have to feel insecure? how do you expect things to turn out good if you cannot feel good about yourself?) & respect others (in order to be respected in return). there's no need to feel that you have nobody, because you actually don't. killing yourself is not a shortcut to end the bitterness of your pain. it'll make it worse, believe me. have you ever thought about who will be next 'victim' when you're gone? have you ever thought about your family, your close friends, or whoever cares about you (because i'm sure you DO have people who care about you, it's just that you don't realize it - yet)?
so here's the deal, pump up your self-esteem, confidence, & start to feel good about yourself. you cannot change what people say about you, it's their right anyway, but you can change your way in dealing with it. don't let their words harm you. sometimes, ignorance is a bliss, you see? the more you care about the bullies, the more they'll treat you bad. the most important thing is - take charge of your own life, do not let anybody control it. you can't control other people's actions, but you can control yours. lastly, when you feel like noone understands your complete misery, talk to Him, He understands, He cares about you more than anyone. we are all important to God & your suffering is before his eyes. let your faith do the talking that He will never ever leave you. meanwhile, hold on to it & be strong.
Be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you." (Heb 13:5)
Rest in Peace, Phoebe Prince. you'll be missed. xoxo.
