Recently I went to an important presentation hosted by a fraternity that made me feel like I was in middle school again. Half of the guys were on their phones. Others were audibly whispering about the presentation, obviously making fun of it. And most of those who participated gave obnoxious responses to get their friends to laugh.

Listen, if you have to be mean to be funny, you are NOT funny. You are disrespectful, and most people probably don't like being around you. Your humor is ignorant and shows your lack of intelligence. It is lazy and boring and annoying to listen to.

Truthfully, I feel sorry for those who really can't think of any other way to be funny than by making fun of others. It is obvious that they need the attention of others in any way they can get it. But really, they probably just need therapy.

There are so many ways to be funny that don't involve hurting others. Dark humor isn't always funny, but it also usually isn't at the expense of another person. Even sarcasm can be funny if delivered in the right way. But blatantly being rude to someone to get laughs is truly disgusting.

I grew up around people (mostly guys) who thought making fun of disabled people was funny, and they did it in a way that looked harmless on the surface. They would sound encouraging, but it was obvious they were laughing about it to all of their friends.

The fact that no one called out the toxicity of their "humor" to avoid becoming the next victim is incredibly sad.

The saddest part though is the societal expectation among boys that being mean is funny. They are raised to believe that bullying will make them popular, and most of the time it does. And no one calls them out or puts them in their place due to fear.

It is truly unfortunate that we continuously allow this behavior to cultivate with each generation. Rather than allowing these attitudes to persist, our society needs to encourage change, were being mean and being funny are not synonymous.

Boys are not too sensitive for being kind, and our generation is not too soft for demanding respect.