Another Suicide

[Kanen]

A Tennessee teen's parents claim that constant anti-gay bullying led their son to take his own life.

As WSMV is reporting, parents and grandparents found 14-year-old Phillip Parker's body last Friday, along with a handwritten note in his trash can reading, "Please help me mom." Family members say they had previously reported concerns about their son's treatment to Gordonsville High School but to no avail.

"I should have knew something was wrong, but he seemed happy," Philip's mother Gena Parker told News Channel 5. "After he did what he did, we found out a lot that we didn't know and there is a lot of bullying that goes on at the school."

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They never stop, do they? When will they stop?

[Raug]

When they each, Individually, have an experience.

[BroadwayDreamer]

Honestly, I doubt it'll ever stop.

[confused102188]

God that hurts to read

[duriru]

That's very sad.

I didn't like the part in the video where his mother says: "He was killed because he was gay. That was his choice and nobody liked it."
It's not a choice

I feel bad for his family. Things like this shouldn't be happening.

[Chouchou]

When will bullying stop? When administrators and teachers stop putting all their efforts toward glorifying their athletics programs, stop being afraid of the bullies' parents in the PTAs, and set the safety of their schools' learning environments as their top priorities. When communities speak out against every incident of bullying and hold administrators' and teachers' feet to the fire. When parents stop resorting to bullying tactics themselves to give their kids unfair advantages, thereby allowing bullying to go unchecked. When the religious community as a whole strongly condemns bullying and makes reasonable efforts to discourage it. When everyone gets a decent education and raises their kids to respect and welcome diversity. Likelihood? Essentially zilch.

When will suicides stop? When bullying stops. When seeking mental health counseling stops being a stigma within some communities. When school administrators and teachers make strong efforts to provide support victims of bullying. When communities take strong efforts to support the victims of bullying. When the religious community as a whole strongly condemns bullying and embraces its victims, rather than allow some houses of worship to demonize the victims. Likelihood? Higher than zilch, but still low.

Tennessee has a long way to go.

[Ace17]

This is why I can't stand people, why must they bully? Is it really worth it? I see no point in it all it does is hurt people...this and all the others who have taken their lives should prove that. We need some level ground here, no one should have to die because they aren't able to control who they love....no one should feel that down on themselves....ever.

[xXLoneWolfXx]

... its so depressing to think that phillip will never be able to see the sunshine ever again.. he wont be able to experience life's beauty. *sigh* everytime i read about a

why are kids like this it hurts my feeling i just wish i will stop..... more n more gay kids die every month due to bullying that's why i wont come out to my family and friends im proud to be GAY!!!

[xXLoneWolfXx]

... its so depressing to think that phillip will never be able to see the sunshine ever again.. he wont be able to experience lifes beauty. if you gave me at least five mins in a room with the people who made fun of him this is wat i would say. "take a good look at wat you have done. thanks to your ignorance a young man is dead. he will never be able to feel love, be able to come home to someone who cares deeply for him, and never be able to experience his full potential in life. if you still feel accomplished then im happy to say it shouldnt have been him the one to have died." *sigh* everytime i read about a suicide i feel useless.

[British Lad]

I feel so helpless, this should not happen not the 21st century. R.I.P Phillip.

[Doctor Faustus]

When will the senselessness stop?

RIP.

[Random Dent]

They need to start trying bullies as murderers, in my opinion.
As for the bullies' parents...they need to be evaluated and asked what the fuck they're teaching their kids.

[IanGallagher]

Originally Posted by Random Dent

They need to start trying bullies as murderers, in my opinion.
As for the bullies' parents...they need to be evaluated and asked what the fuck they're teaching their kids.

I second this.

If anyone wants to see psychology behind some bullies just check out 'Chat Room.' The guy there knew what he was doing, he wanted to see the kid kill himself, and he pushed him into doing it.

Sure, some bullies may not be psychotic in that sense. But, I'm willing to bet some are trying to see what they can get away with and some do have an intent to "kill."

It's anyone. Not just the LGBT community. Kids the world over are committing suicide or, to be more controversial, shooting up high schools and middle schools because of it. Something needs to change.

[Doctor Faustus]

Originally Posted by IanGallagher

I second this.

If anyone wants to see psychology behind some bullies just check out 'Chat Room.' The guy there knew what he was doing, he wanted to see the kid kill himself, and he pushed him into doing it.

Sure, some bullies may not be psychotic in that sense. But, I'm willing to bet some are trying to see what they can get away with and some do have an intent to "kill."

It's anyone. Not just the LGBT community. Kids the world over are committing suicide or, to be more controversial, shooting up high schools and middle schools because of it. Something needs to change.

I third what Random Dent.

I'm naturally an optimist, but sometimes I despair at the callousness of the human race towards its fellow humans.

[MusicMan12]

When I finally become a teacher, I'm going to make sure NO bullying goes on in MY classroom! and, if the school does not have a GSA, I will GLADLY start one. People need to be informed so that this can STOP

[Revan]

I guess it was a post deleted in the database issue, but what I had said was:

The problem here is we still aren't doing enough to make the bullies accountable. Even gay rights advocates make excuses saying the bullies were not that way and were taught by bigotry of their elders. But what I've come to realize is, they're still responsible for their own actions. They may indeed have come that way, but instead of always blaming it on the parents or what not, how about we make the bullies accountable and admit it's their fault over anyone else.


Please Note: Perhaps no one thinks the way I say we do...and we do make the bullies accountable, not many people though can honestly tell me they didn't at some point think "these bullies are only this way because of their upbringing"

[Shevanel]

Perhaps we should just have an automatic death dealing law for all bullies. That will end the bullying for sure.

[Doctor Faustus]

Originally Posted by Shevanel

Perhaps we should just have an automatic death dealing law for all bullies. That will end the bullying for sure.

I dunno. I think forgiveness is the best revenge. You just have to feel sorry for people who feel that they're insecure enough as to have to torment others to their deaths in order to feel better about themselves.

The state, though, should try these kinds of people for manslaughter, if not murder. If only to draw attention to the systemic seriousness of the problem.

[Revan]

Originally Posted by Doctor Faustus

I dunno. I think forgiveness is the best revenge. You just have to feel sorry for people who feel that they're insecure enough as to have to torment others to their deaths in order to feel better about themselves.

The state, though, should try these kinds of people for manslaughter, if not murder. If only to draw attention to the systemic seriousness of the problem.

I agree that death isn't the appropriate response, it's almost the 'eye for an eye' response, and going by that we'd have a lot of blind people running around. But something needs to be done regardless, however I don't think manslaughter is right. Even if they weren't the one who directly killed the person, they still murdered him through bullying and should be tried as murderers. But perhaps I'm too harsh of a critic, I just know if I died as a result of bullying, I'd want my 'killers' to spend the rest of their lives in jail.