I find it too much sometimes, the lives lost due to bullying and haters. They continue to rack up notches on the proverbial gun. Its nothing short of genocide in my view and society as a whole may deplore it yet just as in Rwanda where we stood by while innocent people were slaughtered we are doing the same here.
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| Jamie Hubley and his father, Alan - XTRA Photo |
The not so innocent bystanders either preach the hate, teach the hate or watch the hate grow. Calling a kid a Fag at school is likely considered the most demeaning word you can use. It carries huge implications of being an inferior person, someone not worth a damn.
The young gay man was 15 years old. He was in High School and had started a rainbow alliance club for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender youth and allies. According to XTRA.ca he stated online,
"I am tired of life really. It's so hard, I'm sorry, I can't take it anymore," wrote Jamie Hubley on Oct 14. "I don't want to wait three more years, this hurts too much. How do you even know it will get better? It's not."
Some of you will remember a blog called Canuck Attitude. The author, Bruce MacDonald was someone that lived with the hope it would get better. It never did get better for Bruce and he took his life in December 2010 at age 52.
Bruce was one of the naysayers of the "It Gets Better" video project. It's windrow dressing, it pleases people to think they are making a difference he said or perhaps my words are politer than Bruce's were. He saw the It Gets Better effort as detracting from what really needs to happen. A zero tolerance of bullying and homophobia in our schools. It hasn't happened yet. How seriously do teachers, parents and other students take bullying? When a kid calls another kid a fag what do they do? I suspect its not a big priority, still seen as harmless school yard pranks.
Kids are dying at their own hands, hands that are being forced by perpetrators of hate, bullies and all those that fail to see or look the other way, just as we tied the hands of the protectors in Rwanda.
4 comments:
I have read some of Jamie's blog postings . . . the pain and loneliness expressed by Jamie brought me to tears.
Sincere Condolences to his family and friends.
Sassy
My cousin took his life this summer and it still hurts so much. My heart breaks for him, his family, friends, and our society.
I'm sorry for your loss. Your cousin's suicide is all of our loss.
to the young people who harrassed Jamie for being gay...to those who said "being gay isn't right"...in 10 years or so, you'll probably have a child or 2..or more. you'll teach them to talk, and walk, and do math, and ride a bike. you'll never love anything or anyone more than your own child. you'll burst with love, pride and joy when they graduate from high school or college. then, one day, your child tells you they are in love with a same sex person...whay do you say to this child you love with all your heart? do you call them "fag"? "freak"? do you judge them harshly and unfairly and try to change the beautiful person they are inside? or do you realise that, in the big picture of life, it just doesn't matter who loves who...as long as there is love. no one should die because of who they love. RIP Jamie, may you find the compassion you lost here on earth.
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