Interview/Q&A: Let’s be real: Senior’s Perspective

With all the talk of the no-social media challenge at NDB the week of October 1, it is important to remember where the root of the problem is. While the challenge itself stemmed from issues involving freshmen students receiving unsolicited nude photos, many high school students know that this is not a new issue. As teenagers who have grown up with the presence of social media, upperclassmen know that this is just part of the cost of being on social media and connecting with a co-ed audience.

Several current seniors at NDB sat down with The Catalyst to share their perspective and talk about what needs to change.

The Catalyst (TC): Do you know anyone that has had the issue of sending/receiving nudes?

Grace Dermenjian (GD): “I do, but I don’t want to put it out there. I was volunteering with someone, and they went on their Snapchat, and it was literally a nude, it was unexpected, I don’t know, it was weird.”

Sarah Lim (SL): “No, I know what happens, but I don’t talk to people that do that stuff like that. Sure, I know of someone who has received nudes.”

Caroline Divney (CD): “Yes, my cousin. She always gets DMs of random people, just literally their dicks. It obviously was like, she had to learn how to deal with it with humor. It took her awhile to get used to it.”

TC: When was the earliest you knew someone that this happened to?

GD: “My sister, it started her freshman year of high school because she’s pretty…she went to Carlmont and then freshman year, she [got a dick pic] and was like this is nasty, and then screenshotted it and sent it to all her friends.”

SL: “High school, like sophomore or junior year.”

CD: “Probably like, 8th grade, I think. I was hanging out with my cousins, and my cousin got a random DM [that was an unsolicited male nude] and I was like that’s not okay, but I was in 8th grade, so.”

TC: Do you know anyone that has given up social media?

GD: “My sister. I did for a little but except Snapchat, probably 6 months. But she’s just done with it.”

SL: “Yeah, not permanently. They gave it up for stress reasons. Like during finals, people gave up social media for a while.”

CD: “Yes, my other cousin, she’s super hippie. She gave it up just because she didn’t like it. But I know people who do it for mental health reasons for a few weeks or a month. But she just gave it up and never went back.”

TC: What do you think that the solution should be to reduce the issue?

GD: “I think that boys need to realize how to say hello. I’m okay I don’t want to see that, they just need to realize how to have a conversation because it is scary, they also need to learn how to respect people, they have no respect… You know when you first start talking to a person, and then you get a dick pic, and you realize that they only want something down there.”

SL: “Respect, teaching basic human decency. I think that in relationships where you talk about things like that and respect each others privacy you can do whatever you want, but I don’t think it’s okay to just be on social media and just here’s my dick. It’s also super dehumanizing to get [an unsolicited nude].”

CD: “Just like teaching boys, hopefully from a young age that they shouldn’t have the power, that women don’t want to see your dick. Women aren’t just like “Woah I wonder what your dick looks like I want you to send me a picture.” Women should be able to exist on social media without always getting unsolicited pictures. It also feels so gross, it can ruin your day or your week or month. They don’t realize how lasting the impact is. I also have to think about if someone is going to send me a dick pic if I just start talking to them.”