Yak Exclusive: Big Brother’s Lydia Tavera Speaks Up Against Bullying

In accordance with our initiative this week, Big Brother 11’s Lydia Tavera took some time to send her thoughts, exclusively to the Yak, regarding bullying and the Anti-Bullying movement. Fans may remember Lydia with her unofficial partner of the game, Dae Yum Yum. Some may also remember her as part of the crew who grew extremely emotional when polarizing Jessie left the game that summer. Regardless of your impressions, stepping up for the cause is what this is all about. Here is Lydia’s story.

We would like to personally thank Lydia for stepping up and saying a few words about this important movement. In an effort to join forces and increase awareness, we encourage you to share these stories with your friends and family and encourage continuous efforts to make a difference! We all are capable and we just hope that this motivates and encourages each and every one of us to take a stand and put a stop to bullying once and for all. YakkityYaks, don’t talk smack!


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Okay, So… I’m Lydia Tavera from CBS, Big Brother 11. I am best known as the, “tattooed girl.” When someone sees my exterior appearance it’s obvious that I have a lot of tattoos. It’s safe to say I stick out in a crowd. My time spent on television was a whirl wind adventure to say the least. One of the darker sides of being on a national television show is harsh judgement by the world. The public feel they have to right to judge anyone they see on TV. I hate to burst the bubble but, “reality shows,” aren’t 100% real! Judging someone based on what is shown to you isn’t right. We have all done it, I know but what can be learned from people like myself is this, words have an impact. Words are heavy and things you say in person or on social media sites can impact a life. These words can hurt someones family and job. I have had my fair share of nasty comments said about me online. I have been called a wh*re, slut, tattooed trash, and been told that I shoulda killed myself. All those hurtful words have made me stronger. Every stone thrown at me is someone else projecting what they don’t like about themselves onto me. My tattoos are my armor, they make me different. Some people don’t understand others who are different and want to make things harder for them. Saying mean hurtful comments about someone for how they look, feel, act, or who they want to be is never right. I have learned to take the hurtful nasty comments and turned them into armor. Protecting myself, loving who I am and knowing that nobody is going to make me feel bad about who I am is the real power. With age I have learned this along with the fact that people who enjoy teasing others and sitting behind a computer trying to destroy someone’s character are the real cowards.

Never listen to somebody’s opinion of who you are and what your truth is. Don’t give someone else the power to make you feel bad. Hold your head up high and know in your heart that we are all different and that’s a wonderful thing. It’s so much easier to hate than to love, to judge and not accept. A phrase I often think about is “What’s popular isn’t always right and what’s right isn’t always popular.”

– Lydia Tavera, Big Brother 11