Rutgers Students Talk Digital Abuse After Tyler Clementi's Death

Although digital abuse and cyberbullying have been ongoing issues among young people, the recent wave of suicides by gay teens who have been subjected to harassment because of their sexuality has brought renewed focus to the problems.

In particular, the tragic death of Rutgers University student Tyler Clementi, who took his own life after a classmate allegedly taped him in secret during a gay sexual encounter and posted the video online, has shocked and saddened many and highlighted the potentially traumatic effects of digital taunting.

In the wake of Clementi's death, MTV News asked many Rutgers students how they believe cyberbullying can be eradicated. Several young people suggested that because digital spaces such as Facebook and MySpace are primarily used for social purposes, users typically don't consider the consequences their online communication may have.

"I think the community should be more aware of cyberbullying because I don't think people take it seriously," Cassie Guadalupe said. "People don't take Facebook that seriously but when your business is out there, especially when its public like Facebook and MySpace, it should be brought to people's attention because ... as you can see it can really affect people."

Amanda Murillo agreed that many social-network users don't take into account the harmful implications of posting something snarky, gossipy or cruel on the Web.

"We don't put a lot of attention into cyberbullying because people think, 'Oh, it's the internet. It's just something that someone said on Facebook, it's not that big of a deal.' When someone else is reading that online and you're breaking someone's heart online ... it's destroying people's lives," she said. "I've been cyberbullied before and I know exactly how bad it feels. People are just trying to sweep it under the rug like cyberbullying isn't that big of an issue."

Erin Simon has also been the victim of digital abuse but, fortunately, she was able to resolve the issue before the situation spiraled out of control.
"I've actually been involved in cyberbullying. I wasn't the person that was saying the stuff, I was actually receiving it from the individual, and it's just not a thing that I would want any kid to go through. Luckily, I was able to find out who it was and talk to the right people to get it figured out," Simon said. "But cyberbullying, I would not want anyone to go through that experience. It's a horrible feeling and your self-esteem goes down and really it's just no different than teasing and horribly harassing someone in person."

Ethan Lu suggested that because of the increasingly swift advances in social media, young people haven't taken into account the detrimental effects of sending hostile messages online.

"We haven't caught up with the technology," he said. "Technology grows exponentially and I guess our behavior has yet to catch up."

Scott maintains that regardless of how one chooses to communicate, users must be mindful of others' feelings.

"I think that it is everyone's problem to address how we're interacting online and how we're treating one another in person as well."

How do you think we can combat cyberbullying? Let us know in the comments!