Posted on 12/02/2016 9:42:39 AM PST by Steelfish
December 2, 2016 Cyberbullying Pushed Texas Teen To Commit Suicide, Family Says
TEXAS CITY, Texas -- Family members of a Houston-area high school student who killed herself are rallying for tighter laws against cyberbullying. Brandy Vela’s family says cyberbullying pushed the 18-year-old over the edge, leading her to shoot herself in the chest Tuesday afternoon at the family’s Texas City home as family members watched.
Her father, Raul Vela, said she had been receiving abusive text messages for months from bullies using an untraceable smartphone application. Her father said someone made a fake Facebook page of her, creating another cyberbullying medium.
On Tuesday, Brandy sent an email to her family members telling them she was going to kill herself, CBS Houston affiliate KHOU-TV reports. They rushed home and found her alive.
“We tried to persuade her to put the gun down, but she was determined,” Raul Vela told KHOU-TV. “She said she’d come too far to turn back. It was very unfortunate that I had to see that. It’s hard when your daughter tells you to turn around. You feel helpless.”
(Excerpt) Read more at cbsnews.com ...
Hmmm... Maybe it’s just me, but this story, and the quotes from the family, stink like the pantsuits hILLARY wears.
Very sad. Prayers for this family.
Oh... now I get it. It’s from CBS news. That means the story is fake.
Not to minimize this catastrophe, but I believe face-to-face bullying is often much worse than cyber-cr@p because the threat is imminent and tangible. What did our forebearers do when confronted with bullying?
It seems that we just have a very weak-kneed generation.
Pull. The. Plug.
Very simple to do. If social media has consumed your every thought and deed to the point you go and off yourself, then just don’t go there.
I’d wager there’s a lot more to this story than the report covers.
I’m always conflicted when these stories hit. On the one hand yes bullying is bad, bullies are bad, we really shouldn’t suffer dicks in society. On the other hand, life is tough, at some point in your life you WILL be dumped, fired, and bury loved ones, anybody that can’t survive some bullying is doomed. So I don’t know. It’s sad, and the bullies should be slapped around but she was bound to kill herself over something.
That means that the bully is someone known to her.
Jacqueline Vela told KPRC that she and her siblings have a good idea who may have been behind some of these attacks and have been assisting in the investigation.
Yup, it's likely someone the family knows and thought they could trust up until now.
There always is.
Read the article. She changed her cell phone number, but the perpetrator was able to learn the new one.
The harassment was text messages from a "burn phone". And, they created dating profiles for her, advertising "sex for free".
The perpetrator is likely someone known to her and her family, as they suspect.
Oh heck yeah face to face bullying is worse. Big time worse. At least on the computer you can walk away. Many times a bully will NEVER stop and it can be day in and day out.
I can’t help but wonder why they didn’t all just unplug and get off the facebook stuff and just live their lives. How could they not consider that? Homeschool her for her last year of highschool, for crying out loud. What a tragedy.
Liberal mindset.
The worst part of the story is that the father said “we asked for help...and help NEVER CAME.” HUH? Not to pile on, but this was his daughter. Why didn’t he take her phone away, or confront the scumbags directly? I am totally confused by their seeming helplessness.
I have sympathy for any family that loses a close member.
That being said... questions arise.
Where did she get the gun?
When they got home , she was still alive. Why did they allow her to shoot herself? Were they ‘afraid’ to interfere with her lifestyle choices ? Were they afraid she would perceive them as ‘bullying’ her ?
I understand that this all could have happened rather quickly, but that is not how the story is written.
Agreed.
Nobody can “push” a person to commit suicide, since that is an entirely voluntary choice.
“It’s hard when your daughter tells you to turn around. You feel helpless.”
I think I see the problem.
Nowadays it seems that the bullying never ends. Even if someone goes home, the bullies can still get through. Even if someone changes schools. Even if someone changes States! It is absolutely insane, and it appears that even people who don't know the victim join in the bullying.
And what's worse, one cannot just go and punch the bully. They tend to be many, and they are virtual. Often anonymous. And with a lot of homework and class material sent online, one cannot just disconnect from the web.
I am glad I grew up in an era where bullies could be punched, and win or lose that crap remained in school. Nowadays it appears ever present, very persistent, and to be honest - insidious.
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