[nectar]

hello, this might seem a bit absurd to be posting here, however... i'm in the midst of some personal drama.

i'm 20, and have been dealing with a friend fabricating stories of her life and creating fake facebook accounts representing professors and then posting on her own wall (implying that she is in a relationship with this person, etc.) her posts can be seen by other professors in her department. her department is anthropology.

similarly, although she has grown up in south eastern massachusetts and she and i have known each other for seven years now, she has now declared herself "southern", simply because she went down there to visit family for a summer.

she has also created a fake account representing a friend who lives in rural alabama, and through his vehicle presents opinions that are-- by our definition-- pretty damned racist and confusing, considering i've known the girl since i was 13.

the first post (of this racial strain) went "OPRAH VS. OBESITY VS. RACISM: WHO WILL BE VICTORIOUS??? dude im so sick of oprah if she sings the theme song to the color purple one more time im going to stop apologizing for slavery lol"

somebody commented on this, and to a friend who has recently been informed of all of this borderline-schizophrenia sent me this, with her explaining that this friend (remember: the friend is her, and does not exist.)


etc, etc, this is a sampling of what i have been staring at for the past month and a half.
my best friend is kind of losing her mind-- and while i've said to her "you are not southern, you might gain an appreciation for southern culture during a visit and you might one day like to live there, you cannot be LESS southern as a person-- you live in /massachusetts/."

etc, etc, general mayhem. (:

anyway, at one point, she said to me: "HE LIVES IN RURAL ALABAMA --- WHERE WHITE PEOPLE AND BEATEN AND ASSAULTED DAILY!!" oh no hyperbole.

i would like to think that unless you live in south africa, being beaten for being white-- isn't all too common of an occurrence. sure, racial tensions are likely to exist, but i don't think that in 2009 too many people are getting physically assaulted for merely existing, regardless of their race.

could i get some thoughts on that issue? i'd just like to get some local confirmation that things aren't terrible in alabama, and it is just another place, albeit with less snow than mass. >:|

yes. i realize i am dealing with a lunatic.
i have screenshots for everything she's done.
we're going to approach a university advisor to see if he has any advice on what we ought to do with her. (making up people, siblings, and a family history just isn't sane.

i am sorry if this post has very little to do with what is being discussed on this forum. i was just looking for a place to ... ask. google wasn't being particularly helpful.

[southernnaturelover]

anyway, at one point, she said to me: "HE LIVES IN RURAL ALABAMA --- WHERE WHITE PEOPLE AND BEATEN AND ASSAULTED DAILY!!" oh no hyperbole.

i would like to think that unless you live in south africa, being beaten for being white-- isn't all too common of an occurrence. sure, racial tensions are likely to exist, but i don't think that in 2009 too many people are getting physically assaulted for merely existing, regardless of their race.

I suppose you could get beat up for being white if you go into the wrong places, no different than parts of Detroit, St Louis, Miami, etc............this is less likely in rural areas versus the cities though.

[nectar]

@southernnaturelover: That is what I figured. I pictured the cities being more of a spot for fights-- maybe gangs, drug influences, etc being a problem-- but I couldn't imagine a suburban town in western Mass causing much trouble, and similarly figured things to be pretty chill in the rural parts of Alabama. (:

edit: I also assumed that a situation might occur where some white dude could be drunk, and being a total *******- in which case, sure, an assault might occur. Which isn't so much from him "being white" as much as "being a douchebag."

y'know. normal stuff.

[southernnaturelover]

Well, it is a little different in the rural south versus the north. In Massachusetts I would imagine you would seldom see a black person outside of the cities, but in the south it doesn't quite work that way. In the rural south one county may be 80% white, and then the next county over may be 80% black. Now if "Bubba" with his camouflage shirt went cruising through the wrong parts of the majority black county he may find himself in a situation, not saying he will, but maybe. Same thing if a black man went driving through some backroads in an all white rural area, he may find a problem, probably not, but who knows.

Take Alabama for example, you may drive through some counties in north Alabama and not even see a black person, but you may also drive through some counties in central Alabama and not see a single white person. Different parts of the state vary a lot, but racial attacks are rare both ways.

[1984vt]

The problem isn't really that she is furthering the Hollywood image about the South and its racial relations, the problem is that she is obviously in need of some help. Try an intervention and get her into counseling asap.

[Gottasay]

Call her parents asap and tell them your concerns. Sounds like schitzophrenia.
Then again, early 20s is definitely a crazy, hormonal time for many. Its the reason why car insurance premiums go down once one turns 25.

[oscottscotto]

Uh, that person would no longer be my friend.