Most WTF headline ever. As seen in today's Evening Standard.

TyIzaeL · 11 months

Sounds like something straight out of The Onion.

killartoaster · 11 months

One time at school a guy called me a faggot and told me how much dick I sucked for a straight 50 minutes. I told the teacher several times about it and all he did was tell him to be quiet. Eventually I just got pissed of and told him "Hey I might be a faggot but at least I can get some you fat fucking piece of shit." He turned around and complained to the teacher and then I had to stay back after class and get told why its damaging to call someone fat. Really pissed me off when I was a kid. So to be honest this kind of crap does not surprise me in the least.

dougthoreson · 11 months

Clearly the bullying problem is the fault of the kids being bullied, not the other way around. Insightful.

StoryGopher · 11 months

Is there a link to the original article for some context or perhaps a location?

edit googled

paolog · 11 months

Getting bullied because you've got red hair? Just dye it a different colour.

Getting bullied because you're black? Just use skin-lightener and have plastic surgery.

Getting bullied because you're a girl? Have a sex change.

Hm, yes, I can see how this would work.

11 months

[deleted]

contrary_stereo · 11 months

It should be noted that it's not the PAPER that's making that claim / assertion. They're just quoting what someone else said. And they're not happy about it either.

godofwar007 · 11 months

you talk like a fag and your shits all retarded

MrBiscuitESQ · 11 months

Perhaps they think the only reason Homosexuals exists is because bullying has been banned.

TheBoom305 · 11 months

I suggest going all the way with that one.. Why stop at "acting less gay"?.. Try "acting like a complete psycho bullying asshole", and punch the bully right in the mouth or tear out an eyeball. For the record, I don't condone violence (usually), but if the teachers have more of a problem with someone "acting too gay" as opposed to "acting like a fucking bully prick", then it's time someone showed these bullies how it feels to be stomped on for once.

Super_King_ · 11 months

"To avoid discrimination try being less black."

[deleted] · 11 months

So stop wearing assless chaps to school then?

bracomadar · 11 months

If you want kids to stop ignoring what you say, stop acting like a teacher.

poopyfinger · 11 months

I really don't get why people have the need to "be themselves" all the time. I act differently around different people, it doesn't bother me in the slightest.

milkkore · 11 months

Telling the bullies to stop being assholes instead of asking the kids being bullied to hide who they are wasn’t an option apparently. I mean, who cares if these kids grow up under the impression that they deserve to be outcasts for being different, right? It’s just natural after all when someone shoots you because he couldn’t take your effeminate looks. If just this guy in Texas who was beaten, stabbed and set on fire at a party on Saturday would have dressed less like a fag! Same for the Scottish fella who was beaten, tied to a lamppost and burned last week.

Blaming the victim has a long tradition in our society. Just take the girls who dress “slutty”. The are clearly asking to get raped! And that’s why this whole “being gay is a choice” crap is so dangerous. Because if you suggest that someone deliberately choose to be a suppressed minority you are also saying it’s OK to bully them because, obviously, they could just stop being gay if they would like to have basic human rights. Just like those pesky women who could just stop being women to get equal pay for their work.

baggybottom · 11 months

Somebody PLEASE help me understand where the gay voice comes from? Is this just for attention?

I honestly do not understand this and would appreciate a real answer.

huxtiblejones · 11 months

Being threatened with lynching from the KKK? Just act like less of a nigger!

How is it even kind of okay to suggest kids should suppress their own personality because bigoted cunts assault them over it? I am more shocked that reddit is actually defending this shit.

g_for_gnome · 11 months

The headline's probably sensationalist. One of my best friends is gay and we first met when he was being the most irritating queen on earth in a nightclub. I told him to fuck off when he was prancing around with a feather boa in my face. He questioned if i was homophobic. I then made a point of telling his girl friend, who was equally queeny, to fuck off, too. There's a big difference between being a 'queen' and being gay. He's now my friend and is a normal dude who happens to like men. When you're dealing with idiot teenagers, I'd say it's pretty good advice despite it appearing on face value to be politically incorrect.

[deleted] · 11 months

In high school my best friend was the "weird kid" she dyed her hair and dressed differently. She was getting picked on a lot and went to the counselor. He told her to try and act more normal. Stay classy, educators.

Hyperian · 11 months

i'm sure these people say the same thing about civil rights. just be less black.

TalkingBackAgain · 11 months

Bring a knuckleduster. Smash the guy's teeth in. When they ask you why you did that instead of telling teacher: "I was trying to be less gay. Do you think I nailed it?"

BreSput · 11 months

Being raped? Act less resistant advises women right's activists.

cheshirecatsmiley · 11 months

This kind of "advice" angers me to no end. Why is it the victim's fault? Why can't you tell the bully to, oh I don't know, stop being a fucking douchebag and leave other kids alone?

mastercheef · 11 months

"acting" gay doesn't mean shit. If a bully knows you're gay, it doesn't matter how gay you act. A friend of mine committed suicide yesterday, because of the shit he took for being gay. He was one of the least flamboyant acting gay men I've ever met. Had he not been out of the closet, you would have never known.

Fuck this article. I miss you, buddy.

nameisntjohn · 11 months

What is sad is that this type advice gets dispensed to outsiders of all types all of the time. Victim blaming is rampant because people don't want to change.

Can't find a husband? Kids teasing you during lunch? Lose some weight fatty! People making fun of your religion? Stop wearing a religious symbol around your neck and making yourself a target. You got raped? Maybe you shouldn't wear a short skirt when you go out.

yourdadsbff · 11 months

Goddamn, some of the comments on this post are depressing. And by "depressing" I mean "rage-inducing."

Fuck everything about this "just act less faggy" attitude. Being "annoying" (which, last time I checked, is a subjective judgment) does not justify getting bullied in return. The more we espouse opinions like that in the headline, the more we condone making fun of people who are different. It's tacitly admitting that the victim deserves to get bullied simply because s/he were acting in such a way as to make them stand out. And it doesn't do anything to actually address the source of the bullying itself; it simply tries to sweep the problem under the rug.

"Oh, just act more like a boy and you won't get beaten up." Not only is this not accurate anyway (I knew several "masculine-acting" boys who were targets of bullying in high school) but it reinforces the very cultural attitudes that lead to this kind of bullying in the first place.

Want to prepare these kids for "the real world"? Then how about teaching them to tolerate differences and not physically harass people they find annoying or "strange"? It might be easier to criticize the victims in this case, but that doesn't make it right.

WildPlastic · 11 months

The responses in this thread are really depressing.

Nickster79 · 11 months

As a teacher, I can't believe that this was ever said. Even if it was misspoken/misinterpreted as "stop acting out so much" towards a kid with stereotypically gay mannerisms (gay or not, kids that act out to draw attention to themselves are a huge distraction), a child's sexual orientation should not enter the dialogue when they are being disciplined.

However, in my experience, most gay kids in middle school (who usually have not come to terms with it) are quiet and a bit withdrawn, which is normally the result of not fitting in, feeling very different, and unfortunately, bullying. The last thing a gay kids needs is to be told that how they were born is "wrong."

I know it's not much and I can't win the battle by myself, but you better believe that homophobic bullying does not fly in my classroom.

kyledouglas521 · 11 months

Okay, I'm seeing a lot of comments on here turning "acting gay" into an equivalent of having feminine qualities, and it's really starting to bother me. Femininity is not a measure of how gay a man is, nor is masculinity a measure of how gay a woman is, and if we keep reinforcing that homosexuality and gender bending are one in the same, then that misinformation will be passed down to the next generation as well.

flukshun · 11 months

Did we just find an answer to bullying problem?

atomic811 · 11 months

"Don't want to get lynched? Try acting and looking less black." That is how dumb that headline is.

LEAFsaw · 11 months

Does anyone have the full article to this?

nebber · 11 months

My form tutor said to me in Year 7, after a period of being bullied, "have you thought maybe you need to change how you act, like, be a bit cooler?".

Then at parents evening he read my report to my parents following along the text with his finger. I moved schools.

scott144 · 11 months

This is the most ridiculous thing i have ever heard.. what kind of teacher says this sort of bullshit?

[deleted] · 11 months

Not getting a say in politics? Be more richer-er-er.

maskake · 11 months

Hahahaha, what did my 80 year old grandfather write this?

jscoppe · 11 months

The solution is simple: STOP BEING DIFFERENT.

o.0

SquinterMan86 · 11 months

Bullying sucks, but you have to think about who is allowing them to continue their bullying. It's the teachers. I speak from experience. When I was in Middle School, I was bullied a lot. They did terrible things to me. I've been cornered in gym class and beaten for a good half hour, pushed down a flight of stairs, the list goes on. But any time I told a teacher, the bullies were simply forced to apologize and that was it. Less than a week later, they'd be at it again. For anyone who's still in grade school and bullied a lot, I have these words of wisdom to pass on:

Stand up for yourself. I know it hurts, but NEVER contemplate suicide. You're only letting the bullies win. Instead of hurting yourself, hurt them. It offers much more personal satisfaction.
Teachers will not help you. If anything, they are passive bystanders and therefore just as guilty as a bully. Tell them that when you finally stand up for yourself and YOU get punished for it.
Bullies are bad people. It doesn't matter if they have an unfortunate upbringing. They can still control their actions, and because of that, they do not deserve to be felt sorry for. You are most likely a good person who never does anything wrong. Therefore, if you stand up for yourself and push back, you're doing the world a service by putting a bad person in their place.
Hurt the bully so badly that they become scared of you. If you simply punch them or push them, they will just punch or push harder. You have to physically injure them and make them think you're an unstable, insane person who would injure them more if they tried to fight back. The only language bullies can understand is force. It's polite to speak in another person's language.

Hope that helps. BTW this is not trolling. I am 100% serious. If I had heeded these words when I was young, I'd have been a much happier teenager.

Alex-the-3217th · 11 months

Yes and Men should be less masculine and Women less feminine. Herpa derpa fookin derr...

We should all be conforming robots because the closed minded dickweed general population doesn't like it.

deduplication · 11 months

They make a valid point.

poopsquad · 11 months

since bully's pick on those that are different, the answer to the problem must be for all of us to be bully's! then no one will be different

MrRaz · 11 months

So THAT'S why they kept bullying me! I wish my teachers were this wise.

isometimesmakesense · 11 months

Act less happy?

theotherdoctor · 11 months

Being bullied? Just act less ginger!

a55hol3 · 11 months

I realize bullying is a problem, always has been a problem, and always will be a problem, but you know how it was solved when I was in school? One of two ways: fucking ignore the dumbshits, or fucking push their dumbshit leader on their ass in front of all their dumbshit bully friends.

"Telling on someone" doesn't work in the real world unless you want to get laughed at or thought of as a baby.

Grow some balls, and take care of the problem yourself.

chipper-chipper-chip · 11 months

While you're at it, if you're hungry, just act less poor.

cacoux · 11 months

That remind me a headline after a budget cut in a geography program in a public school: ''Just google it''....

[deleted] · 11 months

Why do people feel that school teachers are the fonts of wisdom and knowledge? They're not. They're just regular human and believe me, there is a heaping helping of teachers in schools who simply should never have been put through teachers college and should never have been certed to teach. But, when we make everything about cost and price, who gives a fuck about quality teachers right?

lux22 · 11 months

Makes me think this headline was chosen with the direct intent to spark controversy...thereby increasing the visibility of the newspaper itself.

abbiistabbii · 11 months

Okay...

Proceeds to start to call everything "Gay" and beats up anyone who doesn't match PERFECTLY to "normality".

HairyEyebrows · 11 months

Multi-level stupid.

Caf-fiend · 11 months

Those teachers/admins should try acting less fucking retarded.

SatelliteJane · 11 months

Stan - Don't be gay, Sparky! Don't be gay!

Sparky - Ruff!

indeox · 11 months

Full article here: http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-24004687-being-bullied-just-act-less-gay-advise-teachers.do

chowriit · 11 months

I'm from England, and I'm not sure whether to be ashamed this happened in my country or proud that even one of our more right-wing newspapers condemns it...

offwiththepants · 11 months

I am imagining little kids coming to school looking like the Brawny paper towel guy.

[deleted] · 11 months

No way, this story is in my local paper! Makes me proud to be from Essex... Sniff

gabriot · 11 months

if that's the most wtf headline you've ever seen, you should try reading more news. This is child's play

greenstonepilot · 11 months

Holy shit, the hetero-privilege in this thread is astounding.

trip_fontaine23 · 11 months

I feel it is pretty sound advice, not in the derogatory your a homosexual context, but in the context of stop being gay in the sense that you are being flimsy and weak, stand up for yourself, if it is a serious problem, start going to the gym, take some self defense classes, come back the next year and kindly inform him (because violence is not a sound option) that you are tired of his shit and that he should mind his own fucking business, if he protests and continues, slug him in the chiclets.

I was consistently bullied when i was in high school, Despite being 6'6 by grade 10 i was tall and skinny, i smoked a lot of weed at that point so i was all about love, respect and forgiveness. I had a lot of friends, and was never socially awkward, but there are some who don't take kindly to the personable guy, especially, when i showed weakness and never stood up for myself. Like a wounded animal i would ignore it whenever this group of hardcore gang bangers would call me faggot nazi, even though i wasn't gay or german. But like in the animal world when i bow my head, and back off, it only invites these mid level beta males to continue doing it, shoving me into lockers and shit. So i took my own advice, i stopped being a little "fag", went to the gym, took Israeli jujitsu my older cousin taught. When i came back the next year i was 6'6 205 pounds, big for gr 11. One of the bullies tentatively tried to pull some crap, but without hesitating mid class, i confidently told him, if he wished to continue this, and there was nothing verbally i could say to deter him, that we should step outside and solve this like real men, he declined, and later apologized. Second group of bullies, i use that word lightly because they were little wannabe gangster thugs, the alpha of their group tried push me into an open locker while i was walking, now again violence is less than ideal way of solving your problems, but protecting your body from physical harm is warranted on some occasions, and i broke his finger, snapped the thing right in half, and being overly angry and less calm, informed his friends that i would break bones that they really needed if they fucked with me again. I was suspended for a week, had to talk to the school counselor for a week, but after that, no one fucked with me. Why? because i stopped being a "gay" pussy, nutted up, took control of my body and my mind, and became an Alpha, and as much as we like to think otherwise, we still act in primitive animal ways, and when you show CORE CONFIDENCE, no matter how you attain it, the chances of you getting bullied Dramatically drop.

ps. i have gay friends, so don't feel i am in anyway being derogatory. That is your interpretation if you feel so, i am letting you know, there is absolutely no derogatory connotation when i say "gay"

guiseblinder · 11 months

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-24004687-being-bullied-just-act-less-gay-advise-teachers.do

Baldrick666 · 11 months

Well, straight is the new gay. (SFW)

gdstudios · 11 months

This headline has absolutely nothing to do with homosexuality. Now does it make sense?

Qwuffl · 11 months

Kids always attack people who are different from them and they don't even mean it. Gay, fat, stupid, tall, short, black, hairy, with acne - you name it.

ethard · 11 months

Well it has a point....

Nerdherd99 · 11 months

According to Herman Cain's philosophy, if your being bullied by being called gay: "it's your own damn fault". I was a Smaller guy in K-8 and was bullied and made fun of everyday. then i hit a growth spurt and all of a sudden i was taller, stronger, and better looking then those ass-hats. in high school they tried the same shit, I proceeded to systematically beat the living shit out of each and everyone of them and then hooked up with their GF's. thus no more bullying and i fight no more. I don't advocate Physical Revenge but sometimes it is what is absolutely necessary to keep them off you.

[deleted] · 11 months

I am gay.

Rule 1 for teenage gays is "Don't make yourself a target."

I'm not saying that it's a good idea to place the burden on the victim, but this advice would help the victim to avoid situations in which they would be singled out as different.

/justmyopinion

[deleted] · 11 months

All I could read was, "go away, I'm baitin' ".

This is more about terrible parents who shouldn't have children than it is about kids performing homosexual or happy acts. If you think this mentality is correct, you may be a bad parent.

yep45 · 11 months

Well, guys who act extremely feminine, regardless of their sexuality, will get shit from other guys

SwarlyStintson · 11 months

Actually this is not a bad idea. Even if you are a faggot, not saying theres anything wrong with that, blending in will get you less attention. Source http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AcNB8tzjiCw

B4ronSamedi · 11 months

I'm gonna say this to say this because I see the term feminine being thrown around a lot.. you have to take into account the fact that you are no longer in touch and culture for kids these age has changed considerably.

While I'd also argue the entire concept of 'feminine' is a bit out dated, have you really thought about what kids now are like? Scene or whatever you want to call them kids make up a large percentage, going to most schools now and there is no 'that one goth kid'. Crazy shit like that is mainstream to them, and depending where you are it's not considered feminine or gay by most. I've talked to homophobic kids who you would probably flash judge as the one awkward kid who eats alone and spends 6 hours on hair and shit. Even the preppy types have blended, skinny jeans are normal for everyone lately. Even a couple years ago when I was still in high school it was entirely normal for absolutely everyone to have skinny jeans. Make up is no longer just for chicks.

What I'm saying is the people who get targeted by bullies are targeted because they won't fight back or even better take it personally. These bullies aren't crusaders for the cause of beating the gay out of other kids, they just like beating kids. Gay is a convenient excuse. They could give less of a shit what the insult is, if it works. Used to be spending hours online every day was enough to make you an outcast. Kids now will make fun of you for not being all into Facebook and Tumblr and Lemonparty or whatever it is. My point is you are thinking of the whole thing as if things were anywhere close to how they were for you. You can say I'm young or whatever, but that's exactly the point. There's already an entire wave of kids who have entirely different cultures from even when I was still in school.

TL;DR: People who are saying anything along the lines of 'kids who come off as gay/feminine/French will always get bullied' don't understand bullying. Targets are chosen because how they react. In the same school one person could be driven to suicide for being gay, while another is one of the most popular kids. Youth culture has changed and what might have been considered girly when you were a kid is probably the cool thing to do today. My senior year the latest wave of freshman thought being straight edge and scene was the thing to do. Doing drugs and what not were the thing to do when it was my turn.

TL;DR for the TL;DR: Bullying has nothing to do with whatever bullshit reason is given. Bullies don't target gay kids, they target easy targets. Hell, half the bullied kids probably aren't even gay. Just remember, bullies are bullies. They like to hurt, they don't really give a shit why as long as it works.

WTF

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