Clint McCance, Molly Wei and Dharun Ravi are catching hell, running scared and getting a taste of their own medicine.
Good!
On Oct. 28, McCance, a member of the Midland School Board in Pleasant Plains, Ark., announced his resignation on CNN’s “Anderson Cooper 360” amid controversy surrounding antigay posts he made on his Facebook page.
To be exact, he wrote: “Seriously they want me to wear purple because five queers killed themselves. The only way I’m wearin it for them is if they all commit suicide. I can’t believe the people of this world have gotten this stupid. We are honoring the fact that they sinned and killed thereselves [sic] because of their sin.”
Later, when faced with criticism for his post, McCance doubled down on his ignorance and wrote that he liked that gay people “can’t procreate [and] I also enjoy the fact that they often give each other AIDS and die.”
Several gay-rights groups condemned the postings and called for his resignation. When interviewed on CNN, McCance said he and his family received thousands of phone calls and hate mail, and that he sent his family members out of the state to protect them.
On Oct. 29, it was announced that Wei and Ravi, the two Rutgers students charged with invading the privacy of Tyler Clementi, had withdrawn from the university. Clementi committed suicide after a sex tape of him with another man was streamed on the Internet. Rubin Sinins, Wei’s lawyer, said she withdrew out of concern for her safety.
Yeah … Karma is a ruthless bitch, isn’t she?
The irony is that these individuals who thought so little of publicly victimizing LGBT students can’t take the same negativity and scrutiny they’ve inflicted. And yet, McCance having to send his family out of state and Wei’s and Ravi’s withdrawing from school may throw a monkey wrench into their lives, but these situations are temporary and at least offer them the option to flee.
That same sense of feeling unsafe is exactly what many LGBT students face daily, not only at school but also at home, on the street and online. And many victims of antigay bullying don’t have the means or the option to move to another state, switch schools or obtain any kind of guarantee that the same ignorant attitudes won’t be waiting for them wherever they go.
Nor do many have the understanding of a family or other support system to help remedy their situations.
McCance, Wei and Ravi are experiencing just a sliver of the invasive vitriol and unwanted attention LGBT students face every day. What will it take to rebuild those glass houses?