Yet another teen suicide

[mantori.suzuki]

<p>I believe and hope that the lifting of the gay ban in the military will go a long way toward teaching young people that there is no place where it’s okay to hate gays.</p>

[NYMomof2]

<p>It was a long time ago, but I can clearly remember what it felt like to be a teenager. Small slights loomed large, my sense of self was very shaky, I was dependent on the approval of those around me. I can’t imagine having been able to deal at that age with the level of bullying and harassment that young gay people often face these days. It would have been relatively easy to tip me over the edge in those days, and I was not mentally ill. Fortunately for me, when I was in HS, there was not anything like the level of meanness that exists today, and I didn’t occupy any discriminated-against group (except smart, geeky girls).</p>

<p>I believe that peer behavior has enormous power over young people, and those who make others’ lives miserable bear some responsibility for tragic outcomes.</p>

<p>I also believe that many bullies behave badly in an effort to escape becoming targets themselves.</p>

[Shrinkrap]

<p>Nice, Hanna.</p>

[spideygirl]

<p>Hanna

I think you’re oversimplifying. Culture has a lot to do with whether people in a given crisis kill themselves or not. In America, suicide rates are higher among whites than blacks, even though depression and other mental illness is at least as common (and is treated less often and less effectively) among blacks. I suppose it’s possible that genetics play some role, but most commentators attribute this to the fact that suicide is viewed differently in black and white communities. Suicide is several times more common in Japan than in Hong Kong, which shares a similar racial and financial profile but lacks the cultural respect for suicide that Japan is famous for. None of this is consistent with the idea that suicide results when victims are grabbed by some uncontrollable force or breakdown in the self-preservation system. It isn’t that simple. For most suicides, there’s an interplay among external crisis, internal disease, and decision-making.

</p>

<p>Actually, your response is over simplified. Cultural influences effect mental health, and one’s mental state affects how one processes them. Genetics most definitely play a role as well, at least to the extent that they contribute to overall psychological functioning. The “interplay among external crisis, internal disease, and decision-making” that you describe all takes place within the arena of one’s mental state.</p>

[paying3tuitions]

<p>Local police are currently investigating whether they can lay criminal charges against the bullies, either harrassment or hate crime
[Teen</a> suicide probe looks at charges in bullying - School Bullying - The Buffalo News](<a href=“http://www.buffalonews.com/topics/school-bullying/article565876.ece]Teen”>http://www.buffalonews.com/topics/school-bullying/article565876.ece)</p>

<p>Comment of the Police Chief

“We’re not indicating, not speculating at this point, that that is the cause of his death, … but independently, there may have been crimes that have been committed against him.”

</p>

[Classof2015]

<p>This may be off topic, but when I was growing up, I don’t remember hearing about any kid killing themself, and especially not because they were tormented for being gay. Maybe it was because news took longer to circulate; the internet wasn’t around to facilitate cyber-bullying; people were more scared to be “out” as gay so they hid their sexuality. </p>

<p>So now, in an age which should be more tolerant, we have these poor kids being picked on and humiliated. And the web makes it easy, and anonymous, for their tormenters.</p>

<p>When you’re a kid (especially 13-15) your friends are your life. Fitting in, being accepted – that’s everything.</p>

<p>How do we change this?</p>

[sewhappy]

<p>I’ve been thinking lately that this has to be a pretty tough moment to be a teen or young adult. The recession morphing into the Great Recession and then the Double Dip and occasionally sometimes even the D-word. Lots of stressed households. Lots of uncertainty worldwide. I know it probably doesn’t compare to the adolescence of the Greatest Generation but my sense is that our culture was really different then, stronger community and family ties, more traditions, more structure.</p>

<p>I hope we don’t see an increase in teen suicide.</p>

[sylvan8798]

<p>The funeral was this morning. The family attended our church, and S was the head alter server. Apparently, our priest took some heat from some misguided souls for having the funeral there, but the congregation made a strong statement that this was a terrible tragedy and the church sees it as such.</p>

[DonnaL]

<p>Class of 2015, I can assure you that there were plenty of gay kids who committed suicide 30 and 50 and 80 and 100 years ago. One was a high school classmate of mine (class of 1972). A number of the 14 or 15 Harvard students who were expelled around 1920 for homosexuality committed suicide. If you didn’t necesssarily hear about that sort of thing back then, it’s because families didn’t admit that their children were gay. Even assuming they knew about it.</p>

[Hanna]

<p>“I don’t remember hearing about any kid killing themself”</p>

<p>Once upon a time, you heard about a car accident, heart attack, etc. when someone had actually committed suicide. Regardless of the victim’s age or motivation, people simply did not admit that this had happened in their family.</p>

[OhioMom3000]

<p>^ I remember hearing about a few local teen suicides in the 70’s.</p>