I agree with you that a lot of the discrimination and pressures you faced are marginally better now in the aggregate but the fundamental change I'm seeing is the always present, ubiquitous social media pressures. Kids cannot get away from it.
When I was bullied in middle school I looked forward to getting home and especially weekends so I could escape my tormentors for a few days. That respite is gone now. Every kid 12+ is attached to a phone during their waking hours and even when they are not present their online persona is at risk of being bullied & pressured, waiting their for the next time they check updates, messages or really just glance at their screen.
I'm also not convinced we've lost the "suck it up" attitude. Perhaps for major "events" or transgressions, but a lot of this is now standard operating procedure and we completely accept it, the same as previous issues in the past. Just check the comments here on HN; this is a relatively civil group yet I've never needed a moderator to remind me of a relatively obvious code of conduct when talking with strangers or associates in real life.
I had AIM in the 90s and some behavior I experienced back then would now be considered cyber bullying. It's not unique to this era.
I also would not say that relying on being able to escape your physical tormentors on the weekends is a good solution either. Dealing with bullying has always been a challenge.
You can't even get away from it by pretending facebook or other social media don't exist. Someone will create a profile for you and set you up even worse. You have to be on all social media to protect your name. And it's not 12+, it's closer to 8+. Facebook is out though, that's where the parents hang. You don't want to be where your parents are.
I agree with you that a lot of the discrimination and pressures you faced are marginally better now in the aggregate but the fundamental change I'm seeing is the always present, ubiquitous social media pressures. Kids cannot get away from it.
When I was bullied in middle school I looked forward to getting home and especially weekends so I could escape my tormentors for a few days. That respite is gone now. Every kid 12+ is attached to a phone during their waking hours and even when they are not present their online persona is at risk of being bullied & pressured, waiting their for the next time they check updates, messages or really just glance at their screen.
I'm also not convinced we've lost the "suck it up" attitude. Perhaps for major "events" or transgressions, but a lot of this is now standard operating procedure and we completely accept it, the same as previous issues in the past. Just check the comments here on HN; this is a relatively civil group yet I've never needed a moderator to remind me of a relatively obvious code of conduct when talking with strangers or associates in real life.