Midnight Rant II
Austin Li (ISB G12)
Austin Li (ISB 12) presents us with another rant, this time about the trouble he’s seen not only in our highschool but outside it as well.
(Note: this rant may contain content related to outdated events)
Listen here kids, this has been something that’s been really sitting on my heart and on my mind for the past few months ever since quarantine. Something is critically wrong with the culture here in ISB, and I feel like that I’m helpless as I watch the community that I love be ripped apart by toxicity and tensions.
This all began with the rise of Shunyitea in the early months of 2019. Seriously, what else do I have to say? I’ve seen hundreds of ISB students support an account that supports the objectification of CHILDREN. ******* CHILDREN. Not only that, but this account has openly disclosed private information about the personal lives of students, which is seriously ****** up. I don’t understand. What don’t you get? Everything that this group stood for: the tea, the drama, the partying, the alcohol, the sex. It’s tearing us apart not only as students, not only as a community but also as individuals ourselves. The morality of spreading tea and rumors goes against everything that we’ve learned as decent human beings for the past decade. This rise in tea-culture has been normalizing bullying and–newsflash–if you’ve been a part of the culture, you’ve enabled it. If you want “excitement” in your life, this isn’t it. It’s depraved and it’s immoral to get pleasure from putting people down. Least of all online. To those involved with said Instagram group, you know who you are:
was it worth it?
Worth the pain you’ve caused young students?
Worth the hate you’ve caused within the community?
Perhaps I’m being too harsh. Perhaps. Three years ago, our High School community was fairly similar to the current state in what we have today. A few years ago, our High School community had an... incident that occurred shortly after a night out at the club that still resonates with me (and some of the other seniors) today. This was because of the toxic culture that embedded itself into our lives, affecting our decisions and relationships. So, this may be why I’m so harsh on **** like this, but it’s just as valid. I don’t want it to happen again. Please don’t let it happen again.
You are setting up the precedent for students below you. I might not speak for the entirety of the Senior grade, but when I look down at the grades below us, I think “why?” Genuinely. I don’t have an answer for this. I sure as hell hope that you might. And if you do, is it the same answer to my question?
And this leads us to today. Just stop. Please. We don’t need this. This idea for the need to “spread tea” or cause conflict just to generate entertainment is a cesspool of hatred that will eat at the relationships that we develop as peers within ISB. So don’t. I feel that I’ve been asking far too many questions as I type this out, but at the same time, I’m just so clueless as to why this is happening. Ask yourself as well. Do you want to be part of a community that picks at each other’s faults? One that feeds off the struggles of others?
Just, for once, pause and think about it.