I read another disturbing post this week about a boy who was
bullied (video: https://www.facebook.com/#!/photo.php?v=10152365075571351).
He was beaten up by other boys on the school bus, while the
driver apparently just sat on their butt and did nothing about it, and didn’t even
bother to report the incident.
As tired as I am of hearing about kids being bullied, it’s
only because it’s still so prevalent in our society. And two things bother me
about it.
First, this story is typical in the sense that the school
didn’t get on board quickly or seriously enough until many people got involved.
The uncle of the boy posted the video on Facebook (which
went viral), in an attempt to get support from the public, to contact the
school to get them to take some action. I don’t understand why it has to get to
this extreme for the school to take these incidents seriously.
And the second thing that bothers me is why bullying
continues to be so prevalent in our society. Is it that social media is simply making us aware of just
how much bullying occurs? Or is bullying getting worse?
I feel like every time I turn around there is an awful story
of a child being bullied, and in some cases committing suicide from it, in
spite of efforts of the media, organizations and the schools that do try and
tackle this issue.
Many schools have anti-bully policies, and in Canada the
government is involved with changes in policy and consequences surrounding this
problem, and there is a wealth of information out there about how to prevent
and cope with it. So what gives?
Maybe it was a bigger issue than we thought. Although,
bullying has always existed, maybe we were just ignorant about how much, or
about what to do. We might be just scratching the surface.
I’ve written about this issue many times, in my magazine
column (Support for Stress, Healthy
Living Magazine) and in blogs, yet am still awe-struck by the enormity of
the issue.
However, like with every problem, we have to start by
admitting we have one, and by being accountable, as family, friends, community
and societal members of victims and bullies.
For more information about bullying and how to cope, whether
you’re directly affected or not, feel free to check out the links below.
Columns:
“How to Combat the Stress of Bullying,” Healthy Living
Magazine (Volume 9, Issue 4)
“The Family Stress of Bullying,” Healthy Living Magazine
(Volume 10, Issue 1)
“Strong Communities: A Buffer Against Bullying,” Healthy
Living Magazine (Volume 10, Issue 2)
Blog:
Resources for bullying:
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