Lunchroom applause needs to stop
CRASH.
The blood drains from your face.
The whole lunchroom goes silent.
You can feel your face growing hot with embarrassment.
Then they start clapping. Drawing more and more attention to your small, but loud, accident.
Unfortunately, most of the students in this school have either participated in, or witnessed, the clapping that occurs in the lunchroom after someone trips or drops something.
These lunchroom applauses have been occurring since before I was a freshman. However, I do not know when the actual “tradition” of cheering when someone causes a disturbance started.
I have to ask: Why is this okay?
While lunch can be considered “down-time” to students, it is still in a school setting. Our school is a no-tolerance zone for bullying. Publically embarrassing someone is a form of social bullying.
Bullying is not humorous.
Bullying is not worth applauding.
Usually, the people who trip, drop something, or break an item are already red from embarrassment. There is honestly no need to embarrass them further. Why is it so hard to just pretend like it never happened?
Many may argue that they are entitled to say and do whatever they want because they are not physically harming someone else, even though it may hurt or offend someone. While freedom of speech is very important to how we live our lives in this country, bullying is against school rules.
There is nothing to gain from applauding and laughing at a person who has stumbled, but that person could have a mental breakdown because of your “need” to draw more attention to them. That small moment of clapping might last years in their minds.
Before the argument of, “This generation is too coddled, we need more tough love, people need to stop being pansies” is thrown around, place yourself in the shoes of someone suffering from an anxiety disorder. There is a difference between “coddling” and attempting to eradicate an awful problem that has been around for years. There is a difference between someone “being a pansy” and someone unable to take any more of the sheer awfulness people throw at them.
There is a difference between “tough love” and bullying.
Social anxiety is definitely a problem for today’s teens. More than 20 percent of teens suffer from an anxiety disorder. Being in a school setting can extremely exacerbate a student’s anxiety. But, having all eyes on you after you did something already considered to be “embarrassing” is even worse.
This incident could possibly run through the mind of that person all day. I’m all for having fun and making jokes. I’m not, however, fine with someone hating themselves because they made a small mistake.
This “tradition” needs to end.
17aweber@usd489.com
Anniston Weber is Co-Editor-in-Chief of the Guidon and a senior this year. She has been involved with the Guidon for three years. In addition to being...
Alexa Moreno • Jan 13, 2016 at 10:48 am
When people are applauding others, it isn’t bullying. Were trying to make that person not feel as bad and make them laugh to because yeah, its embarrassing. So it actually helps some people and how is being applauded bullying?? I guess i’m just confused here hah. People need to stop being so sensitive and grow up and little bit.
Haley Benson • Jan 8, 2016 at 12:41 pm
So, I’m not trying to hate or anything but why post this on the school website? We should come to the school site to see positive things that we look forward to seeing. When poeple drop chairs and others clap it’s not meant to be a form of bullying. It’s a thing that’s just been around for awhile. It’s very common and does not only happen in Hays because it happened at my old school all the time. Thats just how our society is, there’s not a single person that doesn’t gets bullied or a single person who doesn’t bully. Come on we are in High School stuff like this will happen all the time.
Lexie Reinhardt • Jan 7, 2016 at 11:41 pm
Okay first off I feel like this is a point that needed to be addressed for a LONG time
Second, Anniston is just stating her OPINION. its not like she’s taking a petition around and asking the principal to do something about it, she’s just stating why she’s feels people should stop
Thirdly, I have chronic depression and severe anxiety I’m on medication for it and have been since I was like double digits, so with that in mind I can COMPLETELY see how this would freak someone out, especially Someone who already is anxious. I have always been a pretty outgoing person but I remember walking into highschool the first day as a transfer student within like 5 minutes I ran to the bathroom and bawled simply because of an anxiety attack. I mean I always hid it so I doubt anyone knew but I remember just walking through the halls would give me anxiety because I was deathly afraid to not get to class on time. Anyway sorry that was wordy what I’m trying to get at is for all of those people saying something so innocent wouldn’t hurt anyone are soooo wrong. As crazy as it is I don’t think something like this would have affected me personally (considering I get anxiety over small things you shouldn’t even stress over lol) , but that’s not saying it wouldn’t have affected someone else.
Fourth, someone above has already stated that her friend bawled because this happened to her, so it might be small to you but obviously isn’t to everyone
Fifth, to the person who said they wanted to see “real news” I hope you realize that.
A,) every newspaper in the country has an opinion article JUST for a journalist to speak their mind on something that THEY feel is righty/wrong
B.) the majority of the newspaper is still “real news”
C.) i know you said you didn’t mean to be insulting but I’m sure you insulted everyone on the staff, and most importantly Mr. gasper the most amazing journalist/yearbook/instructor I have ever met. He forced us to talk to people we didn’t know to get different opinions and quotes on EVERYTHING. And made us fact check everything as well.
And last, mr. Gasper and his students have won award after award after award for their outstanding newspaper, articles, yearbook. Competed in the best of the best and have won. So if you don’t think this is real news, that’s okaybbecause the judges of that obviously do think it is ????
Also whoever reading this tell gasper I said “sup BRUH”
Taylor Drees • Jan 7, 2016 at 1:39 pm
Before the negative comments are posted, I just wanted to say that I really respect this article. People seem to forget that what they consider harmless could really hurt someone else.
I don’t really think clapping in school is that much of a big deal, but other people might. I think that it’s important to try to respect others wishes.
People are becoming so rude and blaming the ones who are sensitive.
It’s nice that people think differently, but it’s also critical to respect others opinions, feeling, and well beings.
I don’t think you’re going to get this tradition to end though. because i have seen even teachers participating in these things. It’s rude, but its not going to stop. People don’t think, people don’t care.
But like i said, i respect this post even though the clapping doesn’t personally bother me.
Alex Feyerherm • Jan 7, 2016 at 11:46 am
I applaud you for writing this article.
Tressidy Barenberg • Jan 7, 2016 at 11:37 am
“Before the argument of, “This generation is too coddled, we need more tough love, people need to stop being pansies” is thrown around, place yourself in the shoes of someone suffering from an anxiety disorder. There is a difference between “coddling” and attempting to eradicate an awful problem that has been around for years. There is a difference between someone “being a pansy” and someone unable to take any more of the sheer awfulness people throw at them.”
Reply: I am a student with severe depression and anxiety and that is coddling. Anxiety or not you need to get used to it. In real life no one cares if you have anxiety, you are going to mess up and people are going to make fun of you and that’s just how it is. You go to a small town america public high school full of snobs. no one cares. would you rather applause and people laughing with you or people yelling and pointing and calling you names for it? this is my and many others opinion so i can promise you it will most likely never stop.
Alicia Language • Jan 7, 2016 at 10:39 am
Finally someone says something about it. I never understood why someone would blatantly embarrass another person like that for a small mistake. It can be very damaging.
Jazmyne Cook • Jan 7, 2016 at 12:29 am
Thanks you. This happened to my friend once and she just started crying. People do not ever think. It’s just rude. She walks super careful in the cafeteria now and gets nervous when people start clapping. I hope it never happens to me, because that would be really bad.
Jacob Hecker • Jan 6, 2016 at 11:50 pm
Hello Anniston, as an avid supporter of the idea of having a school newspaper I just wanted to provide some criticism of the this school’s news and my concerns with it. I am not trying to attack you or anything of that nature, just some criticism that I think needs to be said. So first off I’ll just start with this article.
You say how this tradition shouldn’t be allowed in the school because it’s “social bullying”, and while there can be many different interpretations of bullying I find that this is not a form of bullying. Think about, you standing up while maybe 50ish students just barely applaud at you and maybe your friends laugh. If that is bullying to a student then i have no clue how that student made it to high school, they should have been home schooled because they obviously need to be sheltered from the outside world and all its dangers.
While i think we can both agree that not all traditions are good traditions you make it seem as if you feel that this is something awfully and should never be tolerated. So i’ll say it – It is a silly little tradition that is meant to poke a little fun at someone who made a loud noise. NOTHING MORE. – I can say personally that i have even seen teachers play along in this and applaud when someone drops something.
Lastly i just want to say something about the school news in general. Can we please get some news? Not to sound cliche but can we get an article like “School Meat: Is it really meat?” Something that takes some actual reporting/journalism skill to do. I just want to look at the HHS site and read an article that intrigues me with information that i didn’t know rather than the movie reviews (Nothing is wrong with that) and an opinionated article about some thing that you clearly have a bias towards. If i wanted to see that i could go onto Facebook or Twitter where i actually expect to see this, not from what is supposed to be a news source.
Once again, NOT AN ATTACK, just trying to provide criticism on your work and hopefully improve the general observations/ time actually put towards the news. You guys/girls do way more than what I do but if i have something to say about a topic i will say it somewhere it wants to be heard.
Colton Adams • Jan 6, 2016 at 10:40 pm
Well usually you are right in the fact it is embarrassment, but what is so different about kids clapping because a chair was dropped? Should we stop parents that embarrass their kids in a grocery store, or a restaurant? The thought of everyone clapping after a chair or tray was dropped, is completely forgotten after two days(ish). It is high school, not everything is going to go peachy and straight on.
Marcus Altman • Jan 6, 2016 at 9:30 pm
I do agree with the fact that some students may have anxiety disorders and different things like that, but I honestly feel like when everyone claps it almost makes it less embarrassing. I’d say it’s more awkward/embarrassing when something is dropped/broken and the entire lunch room goes completely silent. Sometimes you just have to be able to laugh at yourself.