Jamey Rodemeyer, a 14 year old boy from New York, is dead. He committed suicide after being bullied over his sexuality. This is such a devastating story; another young person who was bullied and received so much hate that he couldn't see another way out.
A few months ago, Jamey posted a video for The It Gets Better Project. As the bullying continued, Jamey posted several more messages on YouTube and his blog, talking about his suicidal feelings and the abuse he was experiencing. Tragically, he hid what was going on from his parents, who were supportive of him and had enrolled him in counselling. I can only imagine how it felt to find his body outside of their family home on Monday.
I'm so angry and sad about this, I don't know what else to say. So instead of rambling on, here is an excerpt from the article on "The Telegraph" where I first read about this tragedy.
Anonymous commenters were posting abusive messages under posts Jamey had made to Formspring, a social networking site, where he continued to discuss his unhappiness.
"Jamie is stupid, fat, gay and ugly. He must die!," one post said. Another read: "I wouldn't care if you died. No one would. So just do it :) It would make everyone WAY more happier!"
In an online posting earlier this month, Jamey wrote: "I always say how bullied I am, but no one listens. What do I have to do so people will listen to me?"
The day before, he wrote: "No one in my school cares about preventing suicide" and reminded his readers that it was national suicide prevention week. He then posted the lyrics to a song by the group Hollywood Undead, which read: "I just wanna say good bye, disappear with no one knowing".
On Sunday, Jamey made two final posts to one of his blogs – one saying he was looking forward to seeing his late great grandmother, and another in tribute to Lady Gaga, his favourite singer, who inspired him with her anthem to self-confidence "Born This Way". His body was found on Monday.
- Jon Swaine, New York (The Telegraph)
You can read the full article by clicking here: Boy, 14, found dead over gay bullying
Please spread the word about this most recent and devastating teen suicide.
Below I've listed a number of resources and helplines available to teens facing bullying, and LGBTQ youth in particular. Please support these organizations however you can, whether by donating funds, taking a pledge or simply sharing a link to their site.
Thank you.
- Candice
YouthLine(Canadian) - 1 800 268 9688
The Trevor Project (US) - 1 866 488 7386
PostSecret (not an LGBT specific site, but definitely excellent)
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