MaryBeth walks down the hallway to class. A young man carrying his lunch, pushes by her and "accidentally" shoves her into the wall. His friends give her dirty looks and call her names. In class, they raise their hands asking questions about things she has posted on social media. They say things like, "Did you see that movie at the theater last night?" or "Did you know that dogs also are related to this topic. I had a dog named Biscuit once." That just happened to be the name of MaryBeth's dog. They manipulate her to say and do things that they want. The young man and his friends antagonize her until she gets angry. The whole time, unknown to MaryBeth, they have been walking around with their cell phones in their pockets, live streaming the whole incident and MaryBeth's reaction. When MaryBeth goes around town, strangers she barely knows say things like, "I hate it when someone pushes me into a wall," and "I saw the movie at the theater, and I liked it," and "My dog Biscuit liked to eat biscuits." MaryBeth feels like she has nowhere to go and is confused by what is happening around her. Her instincts tell her she is a victim of cyber bullying, face to face bullying, and harassment.
For some students, the incident may have been reminiscent of high school bullying antics. However, bullying does not end in high school. Bullying continues on colleges campuses and may even become heightened because of lack of supervision, rules, and increased independence of students. Bullying on colleges campuses, in fact, may even go farther and get more out of hand than bullying at the high school level. The bullying and harassment are much more serious, and the repercussions could be life-changing for all involved.
In 2010, bullying and harassment changed the life of Tyler Clementi. Tyler Clementi was an 18-year-old freshman at Rutgers University. He was a talented musician, and he was excited for his future. Tyler was also gay. One night, Tyler's roommate, without Tyler's knowledge decided to point a web cam at Tyler while he was on a "date." The date, which included intercourse, was then broadcast over the Internet. Tyler was ridiculed where he had hoped to achieve his goals and pursue his passion. Within days of the incident, Tyler took his own life. The roommate's life was also changed, as he ultimately plead guilty to a third degree felony, attempted invasion of privacy.
Sadly, Tyler Clementi's situation was not unique. Studies have demonstrated that college students across the country report that they still face bullying in college. Cyber bullying is the most common technique used in bullying on college campuses. Perpetrators tend to be heterosexual males and were also bullies in high school. Those who bullied also were noted to have a greater likelihood of mental illness. As individuals aged, the incidence rate of bullying decreased.
In April 2017, the Tyler Clementi Higher Education Anti-Harassment Act of 2017 was proposed to the Senate by its sponsor, Senator Patty Murray. The bill would provide federal legislation to help put an end to bullying and harassment on college campuses. The bill would make it unlawful to harass, cyber bully, use physical aggression or intimidation against someone based on their race, color, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or religion. Cyber bullying is specifically addressed in the legislation. Colleges and universities would be required to distribute its anti-harassment and bullying policies to all students on campus, as well as provide anti-harassment and bullying prevention training programs. The bill includes a grant program that would provide colleges and universities funds to develop these programs.
The bill does not include recommended penalties to those who violate the Tyler Clementi Higher Education Act of 2017. To take the Act one step further, college and universities should work with their states and local authorities to determine appropriate repercussions for bullying, harassment, intimidation, and "attempted invasion of privacy." These institutions of higher learning should send a message that harassment, bullying and cyber bullying will not be tolerated. A joke or bad behavior is never worth someone else's life.
SOURCES:
Kamali , A. (2015). Assessing Cyber-bullying in Higher Education. Information Systems Education Journal, 13(6) pp 43-53. http://isedj.org/2015-13/
Gibb, Z. ((2014). Who Does That Anyway? Predictors and Personality Correlates of Cyberbullying in College. Computers in Human Behavior, 38, pp 8-16. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0747563214002878#ab005
Young-Jones, A., Fursa, S., Byrket, J.S. et al. Soc Psychol Educ (2015) 18: 185. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11218-014-9287-1
Asher, Y., Stark. A., Fireman, G. Computers in Human Behavior. Comparing Electronic and Traditional Bullying In Embarassment and Exclusion Scenarios.
Garland, T., Policastro, C., Richards, T., Miller, K. Blaming the Victim: University Student Attitudes Toward Bullying. Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma. vol. 26, Iss. 1,2017. http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/citedby/10.1080/10926771.2016.1194940?scroll=top&needAccess=true
S.954 - Tyler Clementi Higher Education Anti-Harassment Act of 2017. 115th Congress. (2017-2018). https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/senate-bill/954/text
Tyler Clementi Foundation. Tyler's Story. https://tylerclementi.org/tylers-story/
New York Times. Roommate in Tyler Clementi Case Pleads Guilty to Attempted Invasion of Privacy. Oct. 27, 2016. https://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/28/nyregion/dharun-ravi-tyler-clementi-case-guilty-plea.html
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| Photo by Jeanette R. Harrison, MPH |
For some students, the incident may have been reminiscent of high school bullying antics. However, bullying does not end in high school. Bullying continues on colleges campuses and may even become heightened because of lack of supervision, rules, and increased independence of students. Bullying on colleges campuses, in fact, may even go farther and get more out of hand than bullying at the high school level. The bullying and harassment are much more serious, and the repercussions could be life-changing for all involved.
In 2010, bullying and harassment changed the life of Tyler Clementi. Tyler Clementi was an 18-year-old freshman at Rutgers University. He was a talented musician, and he was excited for his future. Tyler was also gay. One night, Tyler's roommate, without Tyler's knowledge decided to point a web cam at Tyler while he was on a "date." The date, which included intercourse, was then broadcast over the Internet. Tyler was ridiculed where he had hoped to achieve his goals and pursue his passion. Within days of the incident, Tyler took his own life. The roommate's life was also changed, as he ultimately plead guilty to a third degree felony, attempted invasion of privacy.
Sadly, Tyler Clementi's situation was not unique. Studies have demonstrated that college students across the country report that they still face bullying in college. Cyber bullying is the most common technique used in bullying on college campuses. Perpetrators tend to be heterosexual males and were also bullies in high school. Those who bullied also were noted to have a greater likelihood of mental illness. As individuals aged, the incidence rate of bullying decreased.
In April 2017, the Tyler Clementi Higher Education Anti-Harassment Act of 2017 was proposed to the Senate by its sponsor, Senator Patty Murray. The bill would provide federal legislation to help put an end to bullying and harassment on college campuses. The bill would make it unlawful to harass, cyber bully, use physical aggression or intimidation against someone based on their race, color, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or religion. Cyber bullying is specifically addressed in the legislation. Colleges and universities would be required to distribute its anti-harassment and bullying policies to all students on campus, as well as provide anti-harassment and bullying prevention training programs. The bill includes a grant program that would provide colleges and universities funds to develop these programs.
The bill does not include recommended penalties to those who violate the Tyler Clementi Higher Education Act of 2017. To take the Act one step further, college and universities should work with their states and local authorities to determine appropriate repercussions for bullying, harassment, intimidation, and "attempted invasion of privacy." These institutions of higher learning should send a message that harassment, bullying and cyber bullying will not be tolerated. A joke or bad behavior is never worth someone else's life.
SOURCES:
Kamali , A. (2015). Assessing Cyber-bullying in Higher Education. Information Systems Education Journal, 13(6) pp 43-53. http://isedj.org/2015-13/
Gibb, Z. ((2014). Who Does That Anyway? Predictors and Personality Correlates of Cyberbullying in College. Computers in Human Behavior, 38, pp 8-16. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0747563214002878#ab005
Young-Jones, A., Fursa, S., Byrket, J.S. et al. Soc Psychol Educ (2015) 18: 185. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11218-014-9287-1
Asher, Y., Stark. A., Fireman, G. Computers in Human Behavior. Comparing Electronic and Traditional Bullying In Embarassment and Exclusion Scenarios.
Garland, T., Policastro, C., Richards, T., Miller, K. Blaming the Victim: University Student Attitudes Toward Bullying. Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma. vol. 26, Iss. 1,2017. http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/citedby/10.1080/10926771.2016.1194940?scroll=top&needAccess=true
S.954 - Tyler Clementi Higher Education Anti-Harassment Act of 2017. 115th Congress. (2017-2018). https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/senate-bill/954/text
Tyler Clementi Foundation. Tyler's Story. https://tylerclementi.org/tylers-story/
New York Times. Roommate in Tyler Clementi Case Pleads Guilty to Attempted Invasion of Privacy. Oct. 27, 2016. https://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/28/nyregion/dharun-ravi-tyler-clementi-case-guilty-plea.html
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