Text Messages That Almost Ended a Teen's Life

So, you don’t like your friend’s boyfriend?  What are you going to do about it?  Maybe roll your eyes whenever he’s around.  Tell your friend what a loser he is and try to find her a better replacement? 

So, what happens if he happens to call or text your friend and you also just happen to receive the message?  Do you get involved?  Pretend you didn’t get the message?  Respond?

Unfortunately, for one South Florida teen in this situation, she chose to respond.  After a series of hateful back and forth text messages, the boyfriend came to her school and nearly killed her in a violent attack. 

Please visit these sites for the full story and text messages

·         NBC news article

·         NBC Miami

·         PalmBeachPost

Here is what this teen looked like after her friend’s boyfriend was done with her: 

Ratley in the hospital after the attack.

Photo retrieved from: allvoices



Photo retrieved from: elnuevoherald



Photo retrieved from: truecrimereport

While the case of who bullied who is debatable, but only one of the teens took physical action.  My question is; how did the use of new communication technologies impact this situation?  Would things have turned out differently if cell phones and text messaging did not exist?  It is my opinion that these two teens would probably have never crossed paths, if we didn’t have access to new communication technologies.  However, if they did meet prior to this beating, I do not believe that the teen girl would have said out loud a fraction of what she said through text messages to her friend’s boyfriend in person.  It is much easier to be cruel when you are shielded by distance, hiding behind your communication technologies.  The boy also would not have had so much time to prepare and arm himself, if a direct face-to-face interaction still resulted in a fight.  Perhaps, the injuries would have been less extensive.  We will never know the answer.

The use of cyberspace can create a feeling of deindividuation, weakening one’s ability to regulate their behavior (Bucy, 2005).  It can also result in a tendency to immediately react based on one’s current emotional state (Bucy, 2009).  I think the process of deindividuation played a role on the events that took place between these two teens.

With new communication technologies come new responsibilities.  I understand it can be hard for parents and schools to know how to properly address these issues with teens since the concepts are still so new.  However, it is important to listen to our country’s youth and hear what they have to say on the topic of cyberbullying and new communication technologies.  I’m sure if adults don’t have the solutions to some of these problems, a few youths will be able to provide the insight needed. 

References:

Bucy, (2005). Living in the information age. (2 ed., p. 197). Bemont, CA: Wadsworth.