Just the other day I was sitting in my room minding my own business, getting my fix of the hit TV show Bones, when a resident of mine runs in and exclaims, "Is it true that ______ went to prison and there was a drive-by at the McDonalds?" My first response was simply a blank stare because I seriously thought that this young woman was joking. My second response was, "No, because had there been a drive-by at the McDonalds the sirens would have gone off and everyone would have been in lockdown. As for the person being in prison, I don't know anything of it, and if I did know anything, you surely would not find out from me." When this resident left I was in complete shock, the rumors that circulate around this campus is ridiculous. So, here is my message to you this week.
Rumors are ugly stories that people come up with in order to make themselves look higher or simply cause drama. It is an immature act of cowardice and a very ill way of keeping things on mute. I know in the past I have had several rumors about myself being thrown around. According to insiders, I am a very promiscuous student who enjoys stripping for some extra cash. First of all, I've never had intercourse, point blank. Second of all, if I were a stripper trying to make some extra cash… Let's just say my abilities as an exotic dancer must be very poor, because my wallet has been empty for quite some time now. I don't care who you think you are, stop spreading rumors to try and hurt others, it's not cute.
What many of us think will stay behind closed doors, usually won't. Now, I'm not saying distrust everyone you see around you. Those who are there for you all the time, like best friends, RAs and trusted adults, I can guarantee the disclosed information will be locked away and never mentioned again. As for the people that you just met, like someone in a class or something like that, what you think is a cute secret, might end up turning into the next story on the cover of Cosmopolitan Magazine. You have to know who you're disclosing certain information to, unless you want to become Britney Spears' hair catastrophe.
To those of you who have rumors flying around you about yourself, either embrace it or shove it off. I particularly enjoy embracing the negative rumors flying around about me. For example, remember that stripper one I was talking about? Yeah, I might have started dancing around like a duck trying to do the Dougie… All in all, it wasn't very cute. Yet, after my "graceful" performance, I told them that was my routine, and they just stared at me. So if people want to spread nasty things about you, just go with the flow, because if people start realizing that it isn't hurting you, they'll realize that your skin is too tough to pierce.
Rumors are a form of bullying, which is not tolerated by myself, and many others here at the university. No matter what you say, it can still hurt someone. Just because something is a joke, it can still hurt someone. Don't think that just because you're not putting the instigator's name on the rumor doesn't mean you're in the clear. You can be that final person to hear that rumor; you can end something powerful and be a hero to somebody. If you have the opportunity, end a rumor in its tracks and shut it down. Do not go on to spread a rumor about the person who started the other rumor. Be the better person and just let it be. Just like Ghandi once said, "An eye for an eye, makes the whole world blind."
