When Cellphone photos led to self harm and suicide

The case of the Steubenville  High school football players has ended and the boys have been found guilty of rape, the case was busted wide open when photos of the victim was passed around by the players on their cell phones. The pictures show a teen girl completely knocked out and drunk being dragged around by a group who all had sex with her. This story brings to mind another young girl who was in a similar situation but did not live to see her tormentors brought to justice.

Felicia Garcia and cellphone pictures

Felicia Garcia was a 15 year old high school student who grew up with no family, her parents were killed at an early age in an accident. She grew up in various foster homes. Felicia, like so many young girls today had no father and very little direction, One day she made the mistake of sleeping with a member of a Staten Island football team, sadly this turned into a very bad situation.  4 members of the football team ended up having intercourse with her at the same time, as bad as the situation was it became worst.

Cellphones are the new parents

Teens do everything on their phones today, the most intimate details of their lives are shared with friends on their phones. It is a world where adults are not permitted to enter. One of the most disturbing trends among teenagers is the sharing of details by cellphone video, the boys who had sex with Felicia recorded it on their cellphones and shared the footage. Soon many of the students were passing around Felicia’s bad decision with the football team.

She was humiliated, she was taunted continually in school and tried to ignore what happened that horrible night. She later confessed to a friend that she could not take it anymore of the bullying. Girls jealous of Felicia looks, all shared the video to more people.  When Felecia could not take the taunting she began to break. With no family she felt like the lonely person in the world. The video that lived forever on the boy's cellphones was too much for her.

I give up

Felicia stood on a subway platform as scores of students waited for the train, she jumped in front of the on coming train. She died at the scene.

Sadly, in the United States 15 year old boys are heroes if they can kick or catch a ball. Many of the Staten Island parents were worried that the boys would be suspended and miss some “important football games”.  Many blame the school for protecting the players (One teen had a scholarship to play college football) In a fatherless generation many of the young girls are suffering, the role of a loving supportive male is crucial to a young girl's development. In the pass a horrible mistake that Felicia made may have only be a rumor, but with social media the world sees.

A 15 year old girl who had no one in this world chose to be intimate with one boy, he quickly turned her over to his friends to do as they wanted.

The hidden world of teen cellphones and social media has caused bullying to be taken to another disgusting level. It is time parents demand to know what is happening on their teen's phone, It is time for Fathers to protect their daughters. At 15, teens do not have the intelligence or experience to use  these mobile devices unsupervised, It is time for parent to step up and start parenting. Catching a football does not make a child exceptional but character and good behavior does.  

In Memory of Felicia Garcia