Ally Fox Mrs.

Brophy BTT101 Thursday, December 12, 2013

Just Kidding Not OK When Posting Slurs Online Introduction

Simple searches of Twitter or other social networks will find lots of abusive language and the occasional just kidding! which doesnt take the sting out at all, according to a new poll. (Blissman, 2013) In a shift in attitude, most young people now say its wrong to use racist or sexist slurs online, even if youre just kidding. But when they see them, they dont take much personal offence. A majority of teens and young adults who use the Internet say they at least sometimes see derogatory words and images targeting various groups. They often dismiss that stuff as just joking around, not meaning to be hurtful. (Eckers, July 2013) Americans ages 14 to 24 say people who are overweight are the most frequent target, followed by gay people. Next in line for online abuse: blacks and women.

Callis Story

2Fox

I see things like that all the time, says Vito Calli, 15, of Reading, Pa. It doesnt really bother me unless theyre meaning it to offend me personally . Even then he tries to brush it off. Calli, whose family emigrated from Argentina, says people tease him online who jokes about Hispanics, but you cant let those things get to you. Hes typical of many young people surveyed. The majority says they arent very offended by slurs in social media or cellphone text messages even such inflammatory terms such as bitch or fag or the N words. Yet like Calli, most think using language that insults a group of people is wrong. The high school sophomore says he has tried, with difficulty, to break his habit of calling anything uncool gay or retarded.

Jefferys Story
Jeffery Bakken, 23, a producer at a video game company is Chicago, said the bad stuff online, especially slurs posted anonymously, shouldnt overshadow what he sees as the younger generations stronger commitment to equal rights for minorities and gays than its elders Kids were horrible before the Internet existed, Bakken said. Its just that now its more accessible to the public eye.

Just Kidding Not OK When Posting Slurs Online

3Fox

Compared with an AP-MTV poll two years ago, young people today are more disapproving of using online slurs Nearly 6 in 10 say using discriminatory words or images isnt all right, even as a joke. Only about half were so disapproving in 2011. (Booker, 2013) Now above majority says its wrong to use slurs even among friends who know you dont mean it. In the previous poll, most young people said that was OK. But the share who come across slurs online has held steady. More than half of young users of Youtube, Facebook and gaming communities such as Xbox Live and Steam say they sometimes or often encounter biased messages on those platforms.

Just Joking???
Why do people post or text that stuff? To be funny, according to most of the young people who see it. Another big reason: to be cool. Less than a third said a major reason people use slurs is because they actually harbor hateful feelings towards the group they are maligning. Most of the time theyre just joking around, or talking about a celebrity, Jeff Hitchins, a white 24-year-old in Springfield, Pa., said about the insulting references to blacks, women and gays that he encounters on the

Just Kidding Not OK When Posting Slurs Online

4Fox

Vine and Instagram image-sharing sites. Hate speech is becoming so commonplace, you forget where the words are coming from, and they actually hurt people without even realizing it. Some slurs are taken more seriously than others. Racial insults are not that likely to be seen as hurtful, yet a strong majority of those surveyed 6 in 10 felt comments and images targeting transgender or Muslims are. Almost as likely to be viewed as mean-spirited are slurs against gays, lesbians and bisexual people, and those aimed at people who are overweight.

Marias Story
Maria Caprigno, who has struggled with obesity since childhood, said seeing mean images on Facebook stings. But she thinks the online word reflects the rest of U.S. society. Its still socially acceptable to comment on someones weight and what someone is eating, said Capringo, 18, of Norwood, Mass. We need to change that about our culture before people realize posting stuff like that online is going to be offensive to someone.

Ericks Story
Erick Fernandez of West New York, N.J., says what people share online reflects the influence of song lyrics and music videos and movies

Just Kidding Not OK When Posting Slurs Online

5Fox

Fernandez, 22, said he was probably very loose about that himself before he was chosen for a diversity summer camp in high school that explained why phrases like Thats so gay are hurtful. Now a college student, he routinely sees insulting language for women and people of colour bandied about online. I try to call some of my friends out on it but its really to no avail, Fernandez said. They brush it off and five minutes later something else will come out. Why even bother? In the poll, young people said they were less likely to ask someone to stop using hurtful language on social networking site than face to face.

Alexandrias Story
Alexandria Washington said shes accustomed to seeing men who wouldnt say offensive things to her in person post pictures of half-naked woman in sexual positions, followed by demeaning comments and slurs like whore and ratchet. Theyll post anything online, but in person its a whole different story, said Washington, 22, a graduate student in Tallahassee, Fla.

Conclusion

Just Kidding Not OK When Posting Slurs Online

6Fox

There seems to be a desensitizing effect. Those who report most exposure to discriminatory images and words online are less likely to say its wrong than those who rarely or never encounter it. Context is crucial, too. Demeaned groups sometimes reclaim slurs as a way of stripping the words of their power like the feminist Bitch magazines or gay rights activists chanting Were here, were queer, get used to it! Washington, who is African-American, said that on most days she doesnt come across racial slurs on social media. But she stumbles upon bigoted words when race is in the news, such as surrounding President Barack Obamas re-election, and finds them hurtful in that serious context. Likewise, Calli, the high school student originally from Argentina, said he could stomach almost any name-calling but gets upset when someone uses a falsehood to denigrate immigrants.

Just Kidding Not OK When Posting Slurs Online

7Fox

Works Cited
Blissman, D. (2013, September 22). #socialmanners via Twitter.com. Booker, J. (2013, ctober 1!). Social Media i!. "etrieve# December !, 2013, $rom www.socialme#ia.bi% &ckers, J. (J'l( 2013). Social )e#ia &ti*'ette. Mcleans, 1!+1,.

Just Kidding Not OK When Posting Slurs Online

"Fox

Index

Introduction .................................................................................Page 1 Callis Story .................................................................................Page 1 Jefferys Story ..............................................................................Page 2 Just Joking??? .............................................................................Page 3 Marias Story ...............................................................................Page 4 Ericks Story ................................................................................Page 4 Alexandrias Story .......................................................................Page 5 Conclusion ...................................................................................Page 5

Just Kidding Not OK When Posting Slurs Online