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By Azzia Walker
Because of the largely homophobic culture of mainstream America, LGBT youth are at special risk for bullying and abuse. Ninety percent of LGBT students report experiencing offline or face to face bullying at the hands of their peers. LGBT teens are 4-7 times likelier than their peers to attempt suicide (Savage & Miller, 2011). Of course, heterosexual youth are also targets of cyberbullying. Interestingly, tragically, heterosexual youth who are targets of bullying are often accused of being gay. Thus, abuse of heterosexual youth in this way is not only dangerous for them, but also builds an atmosphere of danger for LGBT youth.
At least seven young people killed themselves in 2010 as a result of cyberbullying: Justin Aaberg, Billy Lucas, Cody Barker, Asher Brown, Seth Walsh, Raymond Chase, and Tyler Clementi. These youth were gay, or perceived to be gay.
Following are details of a few suicides which resulted from cyberbullying:
Ryan Halligan, a 13-year-old Middle School student in Essex Junction, Vermont, killed himself in his home in 2003 after cyberbullying from his classmates became too much to bear (Wikipedia, 2011). Ryan was tormented for being a “fag” and “gay” despite being generally known to be heterosexual. On the night of his death, Ryan had an online exchange with a classmate in which he said that he was close to suicide. The classmate typed back, “It’s about blanking [sic] time.” Ryan’s father, John Halligan, has since become a fervent activist against cyberbullying. PBS conducted an interview with Mr. Halligan in 2007; you can read his story here.
Tyler Clementi, an 18-year-old freshman at Rudgers University, was filmed by his roommate while on a date with a man in 2010. The roommate and another classmate distributed the webcam footage online. Three days later, Tyler jumped off George Washington Bridge into the Hudson River (New York Times, 2010).
LGBT youth face special obstacles that can make Middle and High School years especially harrowing, but family support can make all the difference in whether bullied young people survive their pre-teen and teen years. LGBT children without family support are eight times more likely to attempt suicide than those with family support (Savage & Miller, 2011), even without being the victims of cyberbullying. Obviously, it is important that parents of LGBT, queer or questioning children seek any support needed to come to terms with their children’s identity.
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