The Story of a Suicide »

Two college roommates, a webcam, and a tragedy.
By Ian Parker

If anything can take me out of my posting rut, it’s this article from The New Yorker. Ian Parker brings to light many things related to the Tyler Clementi suicide case and his roommate Dharun Ravi in particular. While I was never really sure what kind of person Ravi was, this article certainly confirms he is an asshole. He’s a prick in the same vein as a pre-reformed Tucker Max. He sounds like the person who’d call himself an asshole before you even had the chance to. He prides himself on being an insensitive dick. He finds other people to be beneath him for silly, trivial, and materialistic reasons. We’ve all met the type. The sad thing is, he probably doesn’t even realize how much his insensitive comments and actions hurt people. I’m not psychologist either, but this is the impression I get.

I also know it’s not good to judge people, and I try my hardest not to, but the presented evidence makes it all too easy. Ravi IMs “FUCK MY LIFE / He’s gay,” and “If gay people were like carter, there wouldnt b a problem with gay hatred / Its the fags like this guy that just cause all sorts of trouble” — as if there’s a “good” versus “bad” kind of gay. He judges Clementi for being born in January, using Yahoo Mail, liking violins, and concludes with “Dude I hate poor people.” I guess Ravi and Mitt Romney have something in common.

Please read it when you get the change. Sure it’s a bit lengthy for an internet audience, but it’s well worth the effort. You really get a sense as to what kind of a person Tyler Clementi was, and still is to so many people. It sheds to light so many interesting things about the case including more previously unreleased IM conversations between Ravi and his friends and Clementi’s confessions to internet message boards and his high school orchestra buddy.

When you’re done, also check out Tyler’s older brother James Clementi’s piece for Out Magazine entitled “Letters to My Brother”.

Dharun Ravi Tyler Clementi bullying ian parker lgbtq the new yorker sexuality