Wow. Last night I watched the news and found out that local teen Amanda Todd committed suicide on Wednesday as a result of being repeatedly bullied, teased, made fun of, marginalized, dismissed, dehumanized, alienated, and surely much more. Her story speaks to me not only because I, like she, once felt completely alone and misunderstood (and stupid, ugly, and worthless, among other things), but also because it reveals the degree to which patriarchal attitudes are still around today. What I mean to say is that it's not necessarily just the individual 'bullies' that I blame (girl or boy) but rather it's the naturalized ideas about girls (as sex objects, for example) that the 'bullies' are conveying that I blame. And I go to bed at night and I wonder why the hell more people don't see a problem with these ideas. Don't speak up about them. Don't want to understand, aren't open to understanding, they're transparency, their historical and social construction, their falseness.
All I can say is that I hope Amanda's story brings more people together than it does push them apart. Anyone with me?
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