Tyler Clementi

[evanrick]

He is the Matthew Shepard of the 21st century.


Many people do not yet realize that this is a huge, watershed moment in our nations history.


His death sheds light on the pain and suffering many endure, not just gays and lesbians.



It also reminds us of others in our society, even our world who are forgotten and ridiculed because of who they are.


Its chilling to know he was here, facing this ridicule, and trying to cope with it.



Many of us have had to endure the same kinds of torment, and we have lost too many people who feel helpless and alone.



People will be thinking of this, and Tyler might have been too young to remember the tragedy of Matthew Shepard, but sadly their tragic fates are all too similar.


http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=6918058n&tag=related;photovideo

http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/spying-rutgers-student-tyler-clementi-hate-crime-11773851

 

[gefsmith]

This tragic event has prompted me to contribute to the "It Gets Better Project".

 

[TriBi]

To the OP - you could well be correct.

Time will tell - but this horrible event seems to have grabbed public opinion in a way that similar tragedies have failed to do - and not just in the US, but on an international stage.

 

[Poozy1]

What makes a tragedy a tragedy? What about all the other kids who commited suicide because they were gay? Do they get mentioned at all? What is so special about Tyler that he be called the"New" Mathew Sheppard?

Before I get flamed these are honest questions not meant to be offensive at all I genuinely want to know the answer to this.

 

[star-warrior]

Tyler Clementi will be remembered for having his privacy invaded which set into motion events that lead to his taking his own life.

Common to all of us, not only from the gay community but even those who are straight, and the shades inbetween, the aspect of invasion of privacy is something we all find something to worry about. We place our details in social networking sites, update what we're doing virtually every moment of our lives, twitter, blog, the list is endless. In this day of do-it-yourself publishing online, you not only expose your habits, your thinking and your lives to people for all to see, some of them through friends of friends, or plain strangers get to see who you are albeit through the window you've left open. People probably know more about what other people do and think nowadays than they did before the internet generation.

So, when you find someone invading your space without your consent, it can be very troubling indeed. It signals a loss of control of what you let out in public - someone stealing your private moments and thoughts....

It is probably this which has resonated so far, worldwide, for people of all backgrounds.

 

[backpacker]

He is the Matthew Shepard of the 21st century.
[/url]

I posted this hours after we all learned about the death: "I hope some good can come from this tragedy in the form of awareness. I'm thinking something similar to Mathew Shepard." I'm glad to see that it's happening.

 

[Fucker29]

He's just one face in a much larger statistic.

True. But there's always a case that captures the attention of people the most, that becomes emblematic and sometimes wakes people up for reality. One face in a much larger statistic is all it takes many times.

If you merely present people the statistics, the numbers that won't resonate with them emotionally, that won't make them truly understand how much pain kids go through. You need ONE emblematic case to make people see closely the pain that ONE kid went through and understand that the pain that ONE kid went through is what hundreds or thousands of other kids go through. That's how you slowly change mentalities...numbers alone mean nothing, you need to humanize them first by giving them a face people can relate to and/or feel sympathy and understanding.

 

[Poozy1]

I will repeat what I said in the other thread. He is not more special, but his story caught a lot of media attention. It's sad that it took his death to make it on headlines, but this is the time where we need to make it apparent that this isn't something that occasionally happens, this stuff happens all the time because these people are homosexual.

Kids are dying because of homophobia that is spread by adults. They're in the line of fire just as much as us adults are and people need to realize this. This stuff trickles down and effects a lot of people.

While I agree with you, what makes his death more tragic than anbody else's? In the last 2-3 weeks there has been more then 10 suicides of gay kids.
Yes we need to change this!
Yes it's tragic!
But why is Tyler's face everywhere on the news and the other kids barely get mentioned?
This is a fucking travesty! If there isn't there should be a national day of mourning for all teen suicide victims.

 

[Poozy1]

True. But there's always a case that captures the attention of people the most, that becomes emblematic and sometimes wakes people up for reality. One face in a much larger statistic is all it takes many times.

If you merely present people the statistics, the numbers that won't resonate with them emotionally, that won't make them truly understand how much pain kids go through. You need ONE emblematic case to make people see closely the pain that ONE kid went through and understand that the pain that ONE kid went through is what hundreds or thousands of other kids go through. That's how you slowly change mentalities...numbers alone mean nothing, you need to humanize them first by giving them a face people can relate to and/or feel sympathy and understanding.

I think I might get it now thats a very good point
thankyou.

 

[TheFireGod]

Whoever dies because they are gay or fear social sanctions on being gay is Matthew Shepard. Not just Tyler.

I can't remember which paper admitted to it (It was a big newspaper that I remember), but recently a publication made headlines when one of its workers openly admitted that a White girl getting kidnapped will make the cover much more likely than a Black girl in the same circumstances.

I wish no disrespect to victims of kidnapping nor to those we've lost to suicide. But the faces most associated with these kinds of tragedies will always be those who come from marketable White families that can more likely be sold to the mass public as more relatable. It's an unfortunate truth in our society.

The whole college student angle never hurt either. Were it someone with a job at Walmart--though the horror of the tragedy would remain the same--their chances of equal media attention or effect on the public would be much lower.

I have to agree with you on this.

There was a very young (I believe 11-13 year old) black boy that hanged himself because he couldn't take anymore bullying from his peers for not conforming to their view of how a male should act and dress, whether he's gay or not we'll never know because he was so young when he died.

He and his mother had asked for help, but the school turned him down.

It was a story on CNN (not headline news), but there certainly wasn't any sort of outrage by people outside of the gay community. One would think there would be because this is just a kid and the school faculty did nothing to prevent this tragedy.

 

[TheFireGod]

^ No, but there really wasn't this much public (outside the gay community and buy the general population) outrage and more than one day of broadcast media coverage over the death of a gay person directly or indirectly because of social attitudes towards gays, before Tyler Clementi.

And it is a little valid that the (mainstream and outside LOGO) media is more inclined towards white gays in their shows.

 

[Poozy1]

Why are people comparing him to mathew sheppard?
Their cause of death was completely different
One jumped off a bridge because his room mate taped him with another guy.
And Sheppard was randomly beat to death by a couple of drunks college students. The only thing they have in common is they were both gay or am I missing something?

 

[MoltenRock III]

As we knew from his posts here (See: http://gawker.com/5651659/is-this-webcam-spying-victim-tyler-clementis-last-call-for-help ) I think it's very important to call everyone's attention to the fact that if you aren't out yourself, if you aren't out in the community helping others, if you aren't supporting your local LGBT chapters and resources, then frankly you're not being a good homosexual role model, or making the world any better for homosexuals.

"Internet support" isn't the real thing. It's a pale shadow of real support in the 3D world. I've seen posters here talk about "internet support" and JUB (and other gay sites) being about "healing" and all other sorts of nonsense.

What am I saying? I'm saying, get off your asses! If you're not out of the closet yet yourself, stop being such a pussy and come out. I'm saying to get out into the gay community and start helping in 3D, not some faux support group on the internet. I'm saying to use both your time and money to volunteer and help your local gay community groups. How many more young gay people have to die before everyone stands up and screams, "ENOUGH IS ENOUGH"? I'm saying to not only get out there and vote, but get out there and volunteer proudly as a gay man/woman for your gay friendly politician. To those who whine incessantly about life being more complex than simply supporting gay friendly politicians, I say "FUCK YOU". Stop living in fear. Haul your asses out of the closet and grow a spine.

 

[vulgar_newcomer]

While I agree with you, what makes his death more tragic than anbody else's? In the last 2-3 weeks there has been more then 10 suicides of gay kids.
Yes we need to change this!
Yes it's tragic!
But why is Tyler's face everywhere on the news and the other kids barely get mentioned?
This is a fucking travesty! If there isn't there should be a national day of mourning for all teen suicide victims.

10 that were reported on chances are the number is higher, not every thing is cut and dry and many things are kept hush/hush or just not seen.
As well there are likely many other gay people who maybe are 25 or 40 yrs old who decided enough was enough and off'd themselves too.
Personally I know 2 guys, one was more of a regular acquaintance the other a decent friend who took their lives due to internal conflict with being gay that was in the early 1990's. I've known others who were not teens at the time, older but suicide became their answer only at a later time for them .

Really haven't we all been there for at least a few minutes? Everyone was a young adult/teen and all of this is pretty down beat.

 

[barnbuddy]

Are you suggesting that the gay community, as well as the media, are only concerned with white gays?

Why do some people say "the media" as if it were one entity? I mean, do you really think they are all in one central office building somewhere?

There's CNN, FOX, NBC, CBS, ABC and that's just the TV nets.

And in each one, several programs, each with it's own take.

I mean, Sheppard Smith at Fox looks at thing differently than Fox and Friends morning show.

There's several dozen major newspapers, slowly dying

There's internet news, which is hard to define.

The only thing they have in common, is seeking advertising profit.

That means delivering stories that resonate with their consumers.

 

[MoltenRock III]

This thread wouldn't be complete without at least one of these responses.

Your welcome, dear poster who has written, and I quote:

Thousands of gay teens commit suicide each year. He's nothing special, in that sense. Frankly, this is all sensationalism.


He's just one face in a much larger statistic.


People kill themselves. He wasn't the first, and, god-willing, he won't be the last.


Well, don't these points just highlight how shallow and sensationalist all of this is?


If a similar video was made for the Democrats, there wouldn't be much difference between the two. (When responding to the "Why I'm Voting Republican" thread.

Additionally, you're the one that started the "Have You Ever Regretted/Do You Regret Being Gay?" thread.


So lemme guess.... you're a closeted homosexual filled with shame, that votes for Republicans when and if you actually ever get off your ass to go vote, since you view them all as the "same" and apathetic about politics much as you are apathetic about gay teen suicide, and in fact your own life?

 

[barnbuddy]

I meant MSM, which is largely centralized and controlled.

so...who controls FOX and the Wall Street Journal??

Buddy, I think your busted. GOP PR flak

 

[MoltenRock III]

so...who controls FOX and the Wall Street Journal??

Buddy, I think your busted. GOP PR flak

Of course he is. All the paid Republican operatives on this site usually make 25 posts in the "Hot Topics" and/or "Bisexual" forums, and then belch up on the CE&P Forum where they post a few thousand posts before the mods finally ban them. Lather. Rinse. Repeat. SSDD.

 

[BINOWGAYLATER]

idk...
Tyler Clementi was a kid with psychological issues who threw himself off a bridge instead of dealing with life.

of all the good things here and all the crap here -- THIS seems an ESPECIALLY INSENSITIVE thing to say -- You are not a shrink - you did not know him - you have no idea what he was dealing with in his life - therefore you have no right to judge him- but you do it anyway. What makes you better than him ? - NOTHING -

 

[Corny]

loki, do you know what else happened in that time from his last post here until he left his purse on the bridge?