Canadutch
I don’t remember the last time I felt so completely taken by someone on the internet. By taken, I mean shammed, bamboozled, tricked…
It all started yesterday morning when I saw this video, made by Jonah Morwry, on George Takei’s Facebook Page…
[youtube id=”TdkNn3Ei-Lg” width=”600″ height=”350″]Sad, right? Honestly, I was sobbing my head off watching this video. I shared it on Facebook and talked about it with my friends. I couldn’t believe that this adorable boy was being made fun of and felt so terribly about himself. What kind of world do we live in?! I watched it about six times after, each time my heart breaking a little more for him.
I went out with friends last night and was telling them about the video and we got to discussing bullying and kids and everything that is going on with them in the world today. I told them they absolutely had to see this video! When I came home I found it on my Facebook page and tagged them so that they’d see it right away. Then I decided to do a Google search and see if there were any updates on Jonah after the video. That’s when I found this article on Perez Hilton, which mentioned that Jonah had his own YouTube channel.
This is where it all starting going wrong. Suddenly I knew exactly what kind of world we are living in!
We are living in a world where absolutely anyone can make a tear jerking video and take the world by storm, regardless of what kind of person they are or what they do to other people. All you need is a cute face, a few crocodile tears and a Twitter account and before long you’ll have every idiot on Facebook (including myself) and celebrity in Hollywood blindly supporting you.
You are probably wondering what changed my feelings so drastically. Well, it was this…
[youtube id=”sHzNMChnjko” width=”600″ height=”350″]A video made by Jonah and his friends spoofing a reality show about Obese people trying to lose weight.
What in the fresh hell is this?!
Suddenly I was enraged! First of all, my ears were begging for mercy because of the nonsense in the beginning of the video, then once I really got to the content I became really angry. I was angry because I realized that more than once in that day I’d shed tears for someone who makes fun of people like ME!! HOW IS THIS OK?!
How is it ok for this boy and his friends to target and make fun of an entirely different group of people? Isn’t this what Jonah was weeping about in his video, that people were making fun of him, making him hate himself and that it made him scared to be around people? Did he not stop to think that the people he was making fun of in his video may feel the exact same way?
What kinds of comments would a group of teens get if they made a video making fun of gay people? What would Jonah think of that, I wonder.
Being gay does not give anyone the monopoly on feeling bad about themselves, nor does it give them the right to make fun of others to make themselves feel better. Bullying and belittling comes in all different shapes and sizes. Whether you are gay, fat, wear glasses, braces, dress differently, or any other of the endless reasons people decide to make fun of others… it doesn’t hurt any of the rest any less than it hurts gay people when they are made fun of.
I feel scammed. I feel like when someone gets you to watch a video of a kitten frolicking in a field and then suddenly the face of Freddy Krueger comes jumping out at you. I fell for his crocodile tears, thought he was one of the good ones. One of the kids who is bullied, truly knows how damaging it can be and would NEVER do that to someone else.
Jonah Mowry is not that kid. He’s the kid who makes fun of others, attention whores on the internet and then wonders why people don’t like him. He’s the kid who, whether the tears are real or not, cleverly puts together a video, sucking the entire world in and making them feel sorry for him, thus spreading his cute little face far and wide on the internet. We gave him exactly what he was looking for and nobody thought to look and see just what kind of boy he is, they just saw the video and jumped up with their fist in the air ready to fight for his cause.
I’m STILL willing to fight for his cause, or rather, the cause that broke my heart when I saw the video, for all the people out there who are afraid to or are not allowed to openly be with the people they love, NOT for Jonah Mowry. As far as I’m concerned, he is getting far more attention than he deserves, which is exactly the attention he was looking for. I admit I’ve been a bit obsessive about this since I saw his videos. I’ve tried to ‘spread the word’ about his hypocrisy but he must have a team working around the clock. Any comments I made on his videos were removed within seconds, you’d think he was trying to hide something. Pity his little elves can’t hit their delete button on this post. It’s here to stay.
I’m really curious how some of the celebrities would feel if they saw the other side of Jonah. Would they overlook the fact that he targets others to make fun of them simply because he’s gay and he cried on YouTube? Would they glaze over it because it makes a good cause for them to speak out about? Would Perez Hilton or George Tekai’s opinion change? Would Rosie O’Donnell, who is gay but also struggles with her weight, still stand behind this kid knowing that he cries for being the same as her in one way but makes fun of people who are like her in another?
I’d really like to know, although I doubt anyone of them would answer ME. Maybe I should get out the cue cards and make a tearful video of my own and see if that gets their attention.
Wake up people, this kid saw you all coming a mile away and you made him a superstar overnight. Yes, POOR Jonah indeed.
P.S. As a friend pointed out after I posted my outrage on Facebook. Doesn’t Jonah’s video bear a striking resemblance to this video posted by a girl in JANUARY 2011 (long before Jonah’s)?
[youtube id=”pB4giUlOVAw” width=”600″ height=”350″]Ugh… WAKE UP INTERNET!!!
P.S.S. Editing to add this? DOUBLE UGH!!
[youtube id=”zt5gvl5s2q4″]Really? Is this cocky, gum smacking, fame loving twit really someone you want to endorse???
Anyone know where I can see the video of him being a brat saying “everyone in my school loves me” and the video where he makes fun of fat people? He’s done a good job of getting rid of all of them!! Anyone who can send it to me or somewhere I can download it?
Do you remember the titles of any of his other videos? They’ve been removed from youtube, but the internet immortalises everything.
Unfortunately I don’t remember, sorry. Figures that they were taken down. I guess it’s to stop those who haven’t already seen what he is really like from seeing it and losing sympathy for him the way I did.
He is a 13 year old boy. His Huge video was wrong and bad. I think he needs to take a look at that. That in no way discounts his current video however. Have you all forgotten what it is to be a child? Children are cruel and all they see is how something affects them. The fact still remains that bullying is wrong and we should teach our children that.
I mentioned your response to Jason on YouTube the other day to a gay man who was quite impressed by his video and had posted his own response video to it. He said it wasn’t a sham and when I gave your other evidence to that he told me to stop focusing on the negative and to realize he was just a kid and so on and so forth. I couldn’t believe the anger and the easy acceptance of anything that didn’t attack his own issue. I am no longer subscribed and good riddance.
“Your role is to guide him, not to as Amy Finnie wrote, call him a “rat bastard” and wish to “give him a dish of what he deserves.” He doesn’t “deserve” hatred. None of us do. Life will constantly give you lessons. Instead of a vitriolic rant blog about “maybe [you] should..” – DO IT. Make a video.”
Get over yourself Taylor. Why is Breigh or anyone’s ‘role’ to guide him? We don’t owe him anything. Please don’t put words in my mouth either, I didn’t say that he deserved hate. Karma is actually a return of the energy that you give. I actually believe that he deserves love and to be happy, BUT people who see his weepy video clip deserve to know he’s got other videos out there doing exactly what he cries about being done to him. He should keep his mouth shut about fat people or whoever. I don’t assume that myself or any body gets to decide what he deserves, that’s the beauty of karma, you get what you give.
He should be called out on his actions. He wants people’s sympathy and for people to see his pain and then he turns around and make a video making fun of people. His HUGE video does take away from his original message, it ruins his credibility, it takes away from his honesty. I’m not saying that his first video was a lie, but when you see the HUGE video, we learn he’s not so innocent is he. I think that’s why some people are annoyed when they see the other side of Jonah.
So what if he’s a kid, it’s not like he’s 6. If Jonah was being honest and credible why does he have his HUGE clip on a different channel? Don’t bother answering I don’t give a damn what you or anybody else says. So what if I called him a rat bastard? I don’t hate him, I don’t think Breigh hates him, but I don’t speak for others like you try to, but we just think he is a hypocrite. Boo hoo I cut myself because I am bullied, and then ha ha, look at those fat people.
Finally, why do you tell Breigh to make a video, I think she expressed herself well in writing, making a video change the message.
Also, on his youtube page was a video entitled, TORTURE!!!. In this video, he and his friends tied up and sprayed a 9 year old kid named Dominick with a hose in his genital area. They are laughing about torturing this much younger kid. They only stop when a younger kid comes out and tells them she told and they are going to get in trouble. I certainly wish someone had managed to salvage THAT video.
To think that children who have been bullied and commited suicide are going to be represented around the world by this kid, who is a bully himself, makes me sick.
I wish there was a way to demand that youtube show a removed video in a case like this. It would wake a lot of people up
The message is diluted and meaningless if he acted out the video. I believe he watched similar videos and set out to write a script and act out his script. I have no doubt that some of his feelings and experiences are real but he is a douche. Y is it so hard for people to believe that a gay person can be a douche? I treat everyone equally and believe in equal rights for all. So I have no trouble believeing a gay person, just like a straight one, can be a LOSER!
Sad that you cant take a video that will do more good than harm and twist it into a story for yourself . It is people like you that have this world screwed up!!!!!
You act like by clicking on his video and watching it you elected him to some kind of morality public office, and now you feel disenfranchised. Its a shitty state of affairs, but it makes psychological sense for someone bullied and abused to turn that behavior on others. I’m not saying it’s right, but it’s what happens a lot of the time. I mean, look at your response. You saw him bullying people like you and wrote a 3,000 word blog lambasting a 14 year old kid as an untrustworthy, cocky little bastard.
That being said, I agree that there are some double standards at play here. Homosexuality is off limits, but there are plenty of other things that people get bullied for that go by unchecked. I feel you’re right in that regard.
He’s not perfect, he might even, as you suggest, be a little shit. But he’s damaged and just coming to terms with a new reality, all at age 14 and all very much in the public eye. It’s gotta be tough to cope with that while still being a kid, regardless of the support he’s gotten. If making that video created a turn for the better in his life or the lives of others, then that’s a rare thing to get for free.
If you are looking for someone to try to cannonise, MAKE SURE THEY’RE DEAD. Living people arent as glamorous. Can you imagine the uproar if someone had trawled through the youtube of one of the gay kids who actually suicided and found an offensive video and tried to pull this sort of crap. I’m sure there was something there they could have latched onto, a comment or depiction that was not flattering. But that’s not the point. Nobody deserves to be bullied, not even bullies. I think the indignation of people has, ironically, done exactly what it has condemned. It uses bullying, villification and humiliation to combat bullying. Which doesnt work. Jonah Mowry is a little kid being attacked by adults who really ought to know better.
Don’t get me wrong everyone, I am not one of the masses who thinks he lied about being bullied but I do think that there may have been motives to try to get ‘noticed”. Regardless, as I said in my post, I am fully behind the message that this video and others like it get out there. I just CANNOT support anyone who out of one side of their mouth cries about being bullied while mocking others out the other side. I just can’t, especially when it’s people like me who struggle every day with their weight that he is making fun of. That broke any connection I felt I had to him when watching his video.
I don’t feel like it’s my obligation to educate Jonah. I am not his mother, his teacher or even his friend. I am a random woman on the internet who has a blog. This is my space for my feelings and this is how I felt when I saw his videos.
If I was was obligated to then I think this post is a good lesson for him. A lesson in “Don’t dish it if you can’t take it”… treat others the way you’d like to be treated… what’s good for the goose is good for the gander… do onto others as you’d have done onto yourself. That people WILL feel less sympathy or connection to him if they see that he’s treating others as badly as he is crying about being treated himself.
Bullying is bullying, making fun of people is not ok regardless of who it is coming from. I understand that kids will be kids and that he is hurting, but nobody is questioning the motives of the children who are bullying HIM. They see it is happening and it’s wrong, period. End of story. Nobody questions what they are going through in their lives, what HE acts like towards them (can you imagine how kids must react to the kid you see in the gum smacking video?! Not well I’d imagine, especially if you are a fat kid who’s watched his “Huge” videos). He is not an exception to the rule, he does not get a PASS for having been bullied himself.
If we want to stop bullying and put an end to this horrible cycle, -everyone- needs to be held accountable, even Jonah.
He may be the bully, but this video went viral because you and everyone else felt sorry for someone being bullied as most people can relate to it. It may have not been his intention when making the video but what he did, it raised more awareness than more bullying campaigns could ever do because you thought it was real!
Jonah Mowry could have easily be any other kid/teen that has ever been bullied that doesn’t have the courage to speak out and may have felt suicidal.
What I’m saying is regardless of who Jonah really is, the message is still real (even if he didn’t mean it)
I was just kicked off a FB tribute page for sharing your link
after they had posted it on their site
Taylor said it perfectly, a video does not represent ones whole life, and just because a few happy videos does not mean this child does not hurt inside… Child/young man, either way… I can’t even think of anything to say that Taylor has not already expressed… He was not copying this other young lady, it is a new trend that kids/people are doing nowadays…. Let me ask you this question… Lets say for the sake of it, that it had been faked? Had you not felt compassion for this young man, had it not made you want to look at others in a different light? There are still some good to come out of this…
Thankyou Taylor ^^ for putting it so succinctly and saying everything I wanted to say.
I hear you, I do. I hear that you are enraged and angry that you shed tears for someone who turned out to be a sham and I get it. I also think your question about his intention of making fun of other people (in the video about obese people) is a good one; if he truly is bullied like he claims, why would he do that to others?
In my experience, victims are violent people. If I think back to the times in my life when I felt the worst I notice that those are also the times when I gossiped the most and mentally tore others down in an attempt to make myself feel better. I’m not condoning his actions, no, just that I can understand how someone could be both hurt and inflicting hurt.
At the end of your article, you wrote, “Is this cocky, gum smacking, fame loving twit really someone you want to endorse???” and the way I see it is that is another line that could be considered “bullying”. I understand your anger and I wonder if calling names and getting a team of people to agree with you on how bad he is is actually supporting the kind of understanding, perspective and kindness that is required in a bully-free world.
Some people feel justified in making fun of homosexuals. He felt justified in making fun of people who are obese and the way I see it is that you feel justified in making fun of him, someone who ran a scam on the internet for attention.
Where does the end of demeaning someone start? I think it starts in acknowledging that someone who would say anything to cause harm to another is a confused person. I don’t think he’s terrible, just like I don’t think you are, we’re all just believing these thoughts that lead us to feel justified in taking actions that are unkind.
I love that you wrote this. I think you brought up multiple valid points and I see a lot of what you said raising awareness and encouraging people to question what we are exposed to. I also appreciated that you made a distinction between his video and the actual cause of looking for a way to end bullying when you said “I’m STILL willing to fight for his cause, or rather, the cause that broke my heart when I saw the video”.
honestly does is matter weather this video is legit or a sham. thats not the point. the point is that the msg behind this video is real. this kid is just showing everybody what is really happening to kids that age. it doesn’t matter if its happening to him or his friend. This video got a lot of attention.. but for all the wrong reasons..stop being influenced by what other people think ,and look behind the kid and look at what hes actually trying to get across. and if you honestly think that this isn’t going on in your town. then your blind. because its happening everywhere.. it makes me absolutely sick that everybody is so concerned about weather or not its happening to this particular kid or not.
Well said Taylor. Whether it was real or staged it still is a SERIOUS issue! I am thankful he posted the video and there is a part of me that wonders if he carries some pain himself as his tears do seem real. Regardless, he is speaking up for those that don’t or cannot and they need to be heard. Let’s not become bullies ourselves by attacking Jonah for making an incredible powerful video with a huge message in it for all of us.
The concept isn’t new (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-J4O2-nsFBA) but it can be a very powerful way to get the message across. It’s easy to glaze over watching endless “It Gets Better” videos on YouTube, but when you have to pause to read, the video carries more impact. Most people who bully other people are hurting themselves. It doesn’t excuse it, but it’s good to strip away the superficial stuff and have someone open up to the pain they are actually feeling inside. He’s a kid. Smacking gum or making videos parodying another type of marginalized group doesn’t take away from the meaning or message in his other video. A five minute video does not encapsulate a whole life. He isn’t perfect, no one is… he has pain within him. That is what people are tuning into, not just the external persona. Teach him to make the connections between homophobia and fat phobia. You are (I think) an adult. Your role is to guide him, not to as Amy Finnie wrote, call him a “rat bastard” and wish to “give him a dish of what he deserves.” He doesn’t “deserve” hatred. None of us do. Life will constantly give you lessons. Instead of a vitriolic rant blog about “maybe [you] should..” – DO IT. Make a video. Post it as a response to his video. The dialogue is important. Don’t attack. Explain your pain as he’s done and it will encourage understanding and awareness of other ways people are hurting.
Taylor said it perfectly. Thanks, Taylor :)
Actually I have no issue with the gum chewing video or the fact that he is a bully himself as many marginalized people behave as their tormentors.
But…. Big but.
When I see the video of girl who lost her mom I cannot help but believe that Jonah saw similar videos. The video where he makes fun of fat people tells me this kid knows a thing or two about shooting videos, crafting a storyline, etc.. So I juxtapose the fact that he has acted in other videos with him having seen videos like the girl who lost her mom and it is not a stretch to believe that he acted and directed the infamous recipe card video.
wtf is this THE SALEM WITCH TRIALS
amy finnie. you obviously need to stop allowing media to influence you.. its disgusting to know that somebody actually thinks like you.. you obviously dont have kids if you are so completly oblivious to this matter.
Rat bastard! Thankfully karma will give him a dish of what he deserves.
I just wanted to say thanks for the awesome write up and i will be sharing this all over the web. I also found his other youtube page and was like WTF!!!!
I just saw this shared on FB today and to be honest, as soon as I saw the first few cards, I stopped feeling any sympathy. A real cutter? Doesn’t talk about it on the internetz. Period.
Sorry, but as soon as he started up with that, my brain started screaming “attention whore” and I lost all interest in this kid. I hope he’s called out on the fact that he is apparently a hypocrite on top of being just another whiny junior high stereotype.