Why Jerks are Having the Best Year Ever

Ebony's Michael Arceneaux acknowledges that people who like to use social networking to spread negativity have had plenty of material recently — but he wonders what they're getting out of the malicious humor. 

When I read about the three White high school students re-enacting a 2009 domestic violence incident between Chris Brown and Rihanna in Blackface as part of a competition held during high a pep rally, I wasn't surprised. Racists will be racists, but more importantly, now more than ever you see these idiots succumb to the lowest common denominator in search of a laugh. It doesn't matter how disrespectful, if not flat out cruel, the punchline is … all that matters to these folks is that they get someone to chuckle and get a sense of validation.

So as horrific it is to see young people take serious subject matter like violence against women as a source of “satire,” I didn't need their story to realize how much meaner we're collectively becoming. I often see similar behavior occurring on social media in real time. It's usually worse to witness in that medium given the anonymity of the internet fuels cowards to say things directly to others that they wouldn't dare to in person.

Take for instance the video of the belligerent 25-year-old woman who was ultimately assaulted by a Cleveland bus driver. It didn't take long for people to identity both her government name and her Twitter handle. Once people did, her mentions consisted of one crude joke about her beating after another …

Read Michael Arceneaux's entire piece at Ebony.com.

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Michael Arceneaux hails from Houston, lives in Harlem and praises Beyoncé’s name wherever he goes. Follow him on Twitter.