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Some time ago, the Boston Globe reported an incident in which Ipswich High School Junior Class members received anonymous emails that listed the names, ages, body types, and assumed sexual experience level of 22 female students who had yet to be asked to the school's junior prom. Apparently, the sender was able to gain email addresses from the class's Facebook site.
Shawn Smith, an Ipswich police officer assigned to the school, said that he didn't think any law had been broken, but that the police planned to subpoena the email provider to try to determine who wrote it. The email included asterisks that identified girls by experience "because it's always smart to know how much experience a girl has before asking her to go with you." One star was designated for girls who had "never been kissed," two stars for girls who had "had a couple of good relationships," and three stars were assigned to girls who wore "yoga pants, belly rings, and low-cut shirts (sic) everyday."
Predictably, some students and parents found the email offensive, thought it shouldn't have been sent, and appeared to be in favor of punishing the sender for "bullying" in spite of the assumption that no law had been broken. I didn't see any counterarguments in favor of free speech. Maybe I missed them.
For the record, I am second to none in my belief that it is morally wrong for people to hurt the feelings of teenage girls, or to judge others, period. On the other hand, I believe that both email and emailer are protected by the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, about which the Ipswich Junior High School ought to be teaching its students, and perhaps their parents as well. All things considered, It seems to me that this might be an appropriate reply:
OK, I'll admit it. I'm one of the 22 girls that email was about. I didn't have a date to the junior prom. Actually, I would have liked to go, but nobody asked me. Life is like that.I understand that the Ipswich police are looking for whoever sent the email. Frankly, I think they have better things to do. They seem to think that we've been cyberbullied or stalked or something, and somebody ought to be held accountable. Look, people, this is high school, not the state prison. That stuff happens all the time. We're supposed to be learning things, like what's important in life and what's not. Trust me on this; what some moron says about my "experience" is not. Those girls who think otherwise need to get over themselves!
Whoever this jerkwad is, he (or maybe she) doesn't know what he's talking about. How could he possibly know about whether I've been kissed or not, or how many "good relationships" I've had. Also, there's a reason that I don't dress like a slut. The reason is that I'm not a slut, and I don't want people to think I'm a slut. I don't know about those other girls. Frankly, I think that guys who prefer sluts deserve them, and vice versa.
I'm guessing that the purpose of this email was to humiliate me and the other girls that were named. Some people do that. For my part, I prefer not to give somebody else, especially somebody who doesn't even have the courage to identify himself, control over my feelings. I like myself for who and what I am, not for what some anonymous dork thinks.
I plan to graduate and go to college and major in something that will help me to be a better human being and allow me to get a good job. Then I want to contribute to my community and meet attractive, educated men. I plan to marry one who will have a good enough income to support me and his children while I raise and care for them. I hope he will consider me the love of his life, not the "most experienced student body." Notice I said one - not several. I'm going for quality, not quantity. I prefer being loved for the rest of my life to being popular now. That hasn't happened yet, but, let's face it, I'm still in high school. My popularity is limited to the guys in my school for another year. Frankly, they don't set that high a standard.
So, Mr. (or Ms.) emailer, whoever you are, I hope you enjoy your fifteen minutes of anonymity, but you really ought to consider getting a life. They say that your high school years are the happiest years of your life, and that may just be true in your case.
Too bad about that!
Sincerely,
"*"