With piqued concern about cyberbullying and its effect on the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community in east coast schools, the ISU Government of the Student Body plans to combat the issue before it becomes a problem.

Cyberbullying involves the use of information and communication technologies to support deliberate, repeated and hostile behavior by an individual or group, that is intended to harm others. Tyler Clementi, student at Rutgers University, allegedly jumped off the George Washington Bridge as a result of students bullying him online based on his sexual orientation. 

GSB will draft an e-mail to address cyberbullying. 

Warren Blumenfeld, associate professor in curriculum and instruction, said the people he studied nationwide said that during the span of three months, 54 percent of individuals age 11 to 22 experienced cyberbullying. Of those individuals, 11 percent considered suicide as an answer to what has happened, Blumenfeld said.

But bullying comes in other forms, even at Iowa State. 

“Generally [I think] bullying on campus comes in the form of dirty looks or hearing the word fag — some people say it loudly while walking by,” said Chris, a freshman in aerospace engineering. “Some of it, I guess, isn’t personalized bullying, but there are times where you don’t feel as safe as when you are portraying yourself in a certain fashion. If I feel like I’m acting stereotypically gay, I try and reduce it and monitor how I’m acting in public because I feel safer that way.”

Safety can be a big concern when it comes to bullying.

“It’s not only physical danger, but verbal danger and having a feeling of general lack of safety and unwelcomeness, it destroys your mentality and when that heat is around everyone feels it,” said Keri Norris, senior in sociology.

“You might not agree with someone, but there’s always going to be someone who does not agree with you, and so think about how would you feel if the tables were turned and you were in a situation where you were the one hurting,” said Michael Stocks, sophomore in linguistics. 

Each student will receive the e-mail GSB writes in hopes of making Iowa State a better place to live for all students. 

Editor’s note: This article has been updated to remove the last name of Chris for privacy reasons.