Anti-gay bullying stereotypes and suicides free essay sample

Anti-gay bulling has increased over the years. There are more gays and lesbians committing suicide as a result. Asher Brown, a 13-year-old Houston, Texas teen committed suicide because he could not take the daily ridiculing of being bullied at school for years. Asher was being picked on because his classmates assumed he was gay. They also made fun of him because of his size, his religion, and because he did not wear name brand clothing and shoes. Some of his classmates went as far as performing mock gay acts on him in physical education. His parents had complained about the bullying to Hamilton Middle School officials during the past 18 months, but no one listened to their concerns. He was ridiculed the day before his suicide when another student tripped him as he walked down a flight of stairs at his school. The other student then kicked his books everywhere and kicked him down the stairs. We will write a custom essay sample on Anti-gay bullying stereotypes and suicides or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page On the morning of his suicide he told his father that he was gay. Asher was found dead that afternoon on the floor of his stepfather’s closet after shooting himself (O’Hare, 2010). There are a few stereotypes about gays. One of the stereotypes is that gay people want everyone else to have their same sexual orientation. There are others that are just ignorant because people think that you are gay because you are friends with someone who is gay and you will become gay. Another stereotype is that gay people will give you AIDS. These stereotypes are perpetuated through learned behavior. Most of these children that teased Asher learned about these things from society. They hear adults, other children, and even television shows that portray these stereotypes in gays. Children tend to learn their beliefs from those that are closest like their parents and siblings. Those same children take those beliefs to school and share them with their friends. Stereotypes are not transmitted through parental influence and through peer Anti-Gay Bullying 3 discussion and pressure. It is difficult to determine who is responsible for the perpetuation of stereotypes because most beliefs can be traced back for generations. Something that may begin as a bad experience for one ends in a shared family belief. The media can also our beliefs about stereotypes. It is hard to determine whether or not public opinion shapes the views of the media or whether the media shapes pubic opinion. It could possibly be both. There are multiple television shows that portray gay characters but there one cartoon that stinks in my mind. The Simpsons is a show that stereotype gays because the image of Waylon Smithers. Waylon Smithers is a regular character on the hit animated series, The Simpsons. Waylon is the assistant to C. Montgomery Burns, Homer Simpsons boss and the owner of the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant. Waylon is typically referred to as Mr. Smithers, or simply Smithers by Mr. Burns. On the Simpsons, Waylon Smithers plays the role of the stereotypical gay male who is still in the closet. Even though he has not declared himself gay he has several gay friends, he goes on vacation to a male only resort, and many of his fantasies of Mr. Burns have been revealed by his computer. Smither knows that the people in his town would turn on him if he ever disclosed his sexuality. He is afraid of losing the respect of those that are close to him. Instead of looking at Asher as a person, his classmates only saw him as a gay and poor teenager. They all acted on their hatred and fear for homosexuality. Studies show that school-related experience of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender young adults between the ages of 21 and 25 reports higher levels of depression and decreased life satisfaction (Freeman, 2010). Our society is responsible for influencing his classmates to believe stereotypes about gays who Anti-Gay Bullying 4 harassed Asher repeatedly for years and up until the day before his death. It is certain that stereotypes still persist in modern culture. It is not entirely possible to rid our culture of stereotypes. Hopefully in years to come, this world will evolve and society will look at everyone as being equal. Self preservation will always come first and part of preserving ourselves sometimes means identifying others that are weaker than us based on perceptions. Perception is never completely reality; we will find ourselves relying on stereotypes to classify those we need to fight against to survive. It is very unlikely that stereotypes will ever disappear.

Free Essays on Changing Places

East Meets West American and British citizens have been making cracks at each other’s lifestyles for decades now, with neither side really understanding why they live the way they do. Clothes, food, dental hygiene, music, and behavior have been the butts of jokes about the opposite, unknown society, but in Changing Places, Lodge tries to write from a neutral standpoint and, while his humor is most definitely British, he gets his ideas across fairly well, even to the American reader. One of the more vivid themes presented in the novel was education, in which Britain and America seem to have quite opposite views as Lodge points out through a detailed account of the six months of mayhem and confusion the central characters experienced. Education is typically not a subject from which writers often draw comedy, although Lodge makes a fairly decent attempt. By placing two professors in an educational environment, a field they have devoted their lives to but in a style and location they know nothing about, Lodge first uses a technique that resembles the characters Goofy, or the Three Stooges, in that he allows the characters’ personalities no limits to make them look as out-of-place and as humiliating as possible. For Morris Zapp, this was used when he first arrived at Rummage University and couldn’t understand to save his life why no one would make a gesture so expressive as eye contact until Gordin Masters finally returned to campus to introduce himself first. As for Philip Swallow, on the very first day he arrived, a bomb blew up on the floor he was to be working on, and he witnessed the other faculty play off the incident like it happened once a week while at the same time he was a nervous wreck. The awkwardness of each other’s presences in their respective locations is due in part to the alien environments placed in. Morris, being more laid back coming from a laid back atmosphere, clearly made like a square block trying to p... Free Essays on Changing Places Free Essays on Changing Places East Meets West American and British citizens have been making cracks at each other’s lifestyles for decades now, with neither side really understanding why they live the way they do. Clothes, food, dental hygiene, music, and behavior have been the butts of jokes about the opposite, unknown society, but in Changing Places, Lodge tries to write from a neutral standpoint and, while his humor is most definitely British, he gets his ideas across fairly well, even to the American reader. One of the more vivid themes presented in the novel was education, in which Britain and America seem to have quite opposite views as Lodge points out through a detailed account of the six months of mayhem and confusion the central characters experienced. Education is typically not a subject from which writers often draw comedy, although Lodge makes a fairly decent attempt. By placing two professors in an educational environment, a field they have devoted their lives to but in a style and location they know nothing about, Lodge first uses a technique that resembles the characters Goofy, or the Three Stooges, in that he allows the characters’ personalities no limits to make them look as out-of-place and as humiliating as possible. For Morris Zapp, this was used when he first arrived at Rummage University and couldn’t understand to save his life why no one would make a gesture so expressive as eye contact until Gordin Masters finally returned to campus to introduce himself first. As for Philip Swallow, on the very first day he arrived, a bomb blew up on the floor he was to be working on, and he witnessed the other faculty play off the incident like it happened once a week while at the same time he was a nervous wreck. The awkwardness of each other’s presences in their respective locations is due in part to the alien environments placed in. Morris, being more laid back coming from a laid back atmosphere, clearly made like a square block trying to p...

Case Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 12

Case Analysis - Essay Example His legacy as a leader illustrates how he used the values in different circumstances. Walton always empowered people and ensured that he maximized on people’s potentials besides inspiring people around him. He was also innovative, creative, and acknowledged people’s initiatives. Similarly, he closely related with his juniors whom he involved in his personal interest such as offering then a stake in his business. Walton also understood leadership’s impact as a long-term initiative and made long-term investments such as training people (Robinson, p. 1). This identifies â€Å"freedom,† â€Å"equality,† and â€Å"an exciting life† as his most important terminal values (Mio, p. 1). Freedom was his fundamental value as he demonstrated through hard work to self-liberalization and economic stability. After achieving his personal freedom in the corporate world, Walton offered an environment that promoted other people’s freedom in his work environment. He achieved this through his concept of creativity and innovation that allowed employees the freedom to apply their potentials, independently, towards developing required solutions. His value for equality was also demonstrated through his leadership style that lacked a strict organizational structure but involved all members in innovative problem solving processes. His interaction with junior employees that included offering them stake in his organization as well as relating well with them also demonstrated his value for equality among people regardless of their p ositions. An exciting life that is active and enriching is another evident value in Sam’s life and was demonstrated by his hard work that established his enterprise. He also empowered people around him and particularly promoted innovation and creativity among people with whom he worked. His long-term value for training was another illustration of his goal