Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Bullying is an epidemic

Who are the people that have most impacted you life? A teacher? Your parents? An author? Friends? Did those influential people affect your life positively or negatively?

At some point we realize that we don’t make ourselves; we are shaped. We are who we are because of other people. Hopefully, by people who have made sacrifices, people who have been present in our lives and not by those whose impact has had an adverse effect.




Bullying has harmful effects. It is a topic that has been receiving a lot of air time lately, but it is not a new problem. Bullying affects thousands of children every day, bringing some to the point of suicide. I was bullied as a child. It started out as verbal abuse by the popular girls when we moved from the South to culturally different region of the US. I was in 6th grade. The bullying persisted for the three years that we lived there, becoming more aggressive as time passed. I can recall being bombarded by water balloons on the way home my last day of school.


But I was lucky, once home, I was safe inside my house. That is not the case with children today. They are bombarded through cyber bullying. Due to the growing role of technology in our lives it stands to reason that the harassment these children are receiving at school would follow them through texting and onto social networks.

If you or someone you know is being bullied there are a few thing you can do. Most importantly don't get physical with those bullying you. If you let them know that what they are doing is affecting you it will fuel their cause. If possible walk away. It is going to be important that you take charge of you life and who you are. You may need to talk to a counselor, friend or parent about your feelings. Also, you need to find out who your true friends are, and stick together. There is a campaign called Stop Bullying Now that offers information for both parents and children. I urge you to read this information and become aware of how we can overcome this epidemic.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Thank you for posting this. This kind of cruelty cannot continue. I just don't understand how anyone can find that kind of behavior fun. What is wrong-how do people somehow feel more important at the expense of the feelings of others? It makes for very unhappy memories for the victims, the best revenge is to be the best you can. It seems most bullies may be self proclaimed top dogs during their formative years but end up being losers and perhaps filling our prisons later in life.

“Be the change you want to see in the world.” mahatma gandhi