Words Hurt

Hello,

This post is a more serious one. It's kind of a rant inspired by things that have happened on social media lately.



Hate is defined as intense feelings of dislike happens everywhere. In the school grounds, on social media, at work. It can happen in a small way like someone teasing or bullying you or on a much larger scale like people committing acts of revenge and terrorism. Now I'm just going to talk about social media.

I will be using the word hate a lot in this post but I think it is a strong word and prefer not to use it. Instead of using "the H word", I prefer to say "I don't like", "I'm not a fan", "not my cup of tea" or "not my thing."

This past week while scrolling through Instagram, I have seen horrible comments on people's posts, both celebrities and girls I know and most of the bullying and hate was brought on by innocent acts and difference in opinions. One example is a tweet by US gymnast Gabby Douglas, days after fellow gymnast Aly Raisman opened up about being sexually abused by former gymnastics team doctor Larry Nassar.

 

Gabby received lot of backlash from her team mate Simone Biles and other Twitter users and people left mean comments on her latest Instagram posts, saying "I have always loved you but not anymore", "F*** you", "I will no longer support you", "You're ugly", and calling her terrible names. Gabby later deleted the tweet and said, "I didn't correctly word my reply and I am deeply sorry for coming off like I don't stand alongside my teammates. Regardless of what you wear, abuse under any circumstance is never acceptable. I am WITH you." It hasn't fixed anything, the damage has been done and comments are still being left for her. I feel that it is going too far. It was just one mistake. Gabby has apologised so now I think people should let it go.

 

It happens to all of us. Like I said earlier, things happened on social media. It's not my place to talk about it here or anywhere else but there was so much hate and drama over something that so many people do. It seems like we can receive hate for anything. Believe me, I know. I have been criticized for very silly things such as my scarf being the same colour as my top and wearing long shorts! I can take criticism but when I heard that, I was thinking, "Seriously?" Bigger than that, I've also been told that I am too old to be a fan of some bands I am a fan of. With music, there is no age limit! I know there are parents who are fans of One Direction and teenagers who are fans of older bands like The Beatles. Nobody can tell you who you should and shouldn't be a fan of and which bands you should see.

 

People I know have received hate and been bullied for taking cute photos with their favourite celebrities, holding their hands and even getting likes and follows from them on Twitter and Instagram. So many people take photos like that and get noticed a lot but not everyone gets that much hate. I have no idea why some people are targeted, it is not fair. All they did was go out to have fun with their friends and meet someone they idolize and it had to be ruined.

 

We are different people and have different opinions on everything. Whether you agree with what someone is saying or not, you should not hate on them. We are all entitled to our own opinions and should be able to have our say. Many celebrities have received backlash at some point. Their views on things are very public and anything they say and do will make the news and be seen by the whole world. You have probably been bullied, criticized or hated on at some point too and while our situations don't make the news and are not really public, it still hurts. Words hurt! When I was a child, I often heard teachers and other adults say "if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all" and I agree with that. We should be very careful about what we say to someone because we never know how it may affect them, especially if the person is sensitive. I never hate or say anything mean to anyone, at least not intentionally. If it seems like I have upset someone, I quickly apologise and try to fix any problems and make it up to them. In my opinion, words hurt more than physical pain because scars and pain from physical actions will heal with medication, bandages etc. but verbal abuse and mean comments can stay with people for a vey long time. I remember things that were said to me when I was in year four! Even if you say something as a joke, people may not find it funny and they could be upset and hurt by it.

 

If someone is not in a good state of mind, anything you say could push them over the edge and cause them and other people heartache. (Read my blog post "celebrities are humans too" where I talk more about this.") It makes me upset seeing friends and other loved ones receiving hate, especially over silly reasons. Some people's comments have made me want to stop going to seeing live bands, which is what I love to do but I'll keep going. Nobody should stop you from doing the things you enjoy. Wear what you want to wear, see who you want to see and do whatever you want to do! From now on, I am going to try not to use the "H" word again. Here are some quotes to keep in mind.

 

 

 

Enjoy life!

 

Vishi xoxo