L
ast week, popular YouTube personality and all-around creep Sam Pepper decided it would be really funny to “prank” women by sexually assaulting and harassing them and recording it on video.
Violation and harassment of women is wrong and disgusting, even when it’s done as a prank. In fact, it’s almost more horrifying to me that someone would think “prank” sexual harassment is even remotely OK.
Disrespecting other people’s bodies is not an acceptable “social experiment” or an attempt at a harmless joke. The fact that some people in today’s society tolerate such a horrible act makes me sick. Pepper’s actions promote the idea that such despicable behavior is a normal way to interact with others. Luckily, most of the YouTube community also thought Pepper was completely out of line, and they made sure to let him know.
There have even been reports and allegations that Pepper himself has actually sexually abused women — not just as a “prank.” Although I was saddened to hear about these allegations, I wasn’t surprised. Someone sick enough to think joking about sexual assault is funny could also be sick enough to commit the act himself.
This got me thinking. The popularity of jokes about rape and sexual assault in ordinary conversations is alarmingly high.
“Did you take the chemistry test yet? It totally raped me.”
Really? Your chemistry test? I find it hard to respect anyone who clearly puts so little value on respecting the bodies and experiences of others.
On the Internet, especially on opinion-based websites like YouTube, the number of crude and thoughtless comments that belittle and dismiss basic civility is ridiculous. It’s something we’ve all experienced — watching a video on YouTube and scrolling down aimlessly to the comments section where a barrage of hateful, misogynistic and violent language glares ominously at the viewer from the screen.
I’ve seen death threats, declarations that all women deserve to be sexually assaulted, and unwanted and excruciatingly graphic sexual innuendos all in the first few pages of a comment thread for a Taylor Swift lyric video.
Most people don’t treat each other so senselessly and hatefully offline. Unfortunately, because of the anonymity and the feeling of brash freedom that the digital world allows, the creepy Internet troll has become a regular part of online culture. As college students in a generation hooked by technology, we come into contact with these people more often than most.
It makes me angry that as hard as people fight against misogyny and rape culture in America, there will always be a horde of self-centered ignorant commenters sitting in front of their computers deciding to post hateful remarks online.
There will be horribly sick individuals who think it is a great idea to mock the experiences of sexual assault victims through a “prank” video. There will be a hacker who is so stupidly excited by the private photographs of others he or she will decide to plaster them all over the Internet. These people exist, and they’re frighteningly common.
However, I’m not going to let the salivating, misogynistic trolls of this generation’s media stop me from trying to live my life to the fullest. I’m not going to be dissuaded by the hate that can spawn from a single video — from a single instance of someone speaking out for women’s rights.
By standing together against Internet hate, we encourage the positive creativity the Internet makes possible. I hope all UF students remember this and help to create a more civil, tolerant and respectful Internet than what exists today.
Sally Greider is a UF English and public relations sophomore. Her columns usually appear on Tuesdays.
[A version of this story ran on page 6 on 10/2/2014]
