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Working Together To End Bullying
Posted: 12/19/2011
Ceilidh is a teen broadcaster and journalist from Vancouver, Canada.
As a youth reporter, she uses her voice to speak out against bullying.
She believes it's important for young people to be peer advocates and have each other's backs.
"Spread LOVE not hate. - We'll all be the better for it!"
Read her articles published in Youthink Magazine
Bullying: Can We Do Something About This?
Bullying: It's Still Going On . . .
and
Watch her interview Bullying Prevention - Generation Why, Shaw TV
By: Ceilidh Millar, Youth Reporter
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Students Demanding Change
Posted: 12/19/2011
We are a team of four seniors at Mounds Park Academy in St. Paul, Minnesota. Our organization, Students Demanding Change (SDC), is working with PACER Center to organize a student rally at our State Capitol on February 11th to express our support for anti-bullying legislation. This rally will be a political statement by students for students. We believe that everyone has the right to feel comfortable and safe in school. It is our responsibility as students to stand up against bullying for our peers and ourselves.By: Audrey Berdahl-Baldwin, Louise Edwards, Annette Eneanya, Sydney Eberwein
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My Story
Posted: 12/2/2011
Seventy-seven percent of teens and young adults have been mentally, physically, or verbally bullied. A young adult who has been exposed to bullying is two to nine times more likely to self-harm or attempt suicide than one who has not. In today’s society bullying has become so common among young adults that it has eventually become a norm to some. This type of behavior should not be the type that we consider a norm nor should it be allowed in our schools. Bullying is now a very common issue in many schools, not just in the United States but all around the world.
No one wants to become a part of the seventy-seven percent of teens being bullied. No one wants to believe that they could become one of those who harm themselves. I never believed that any of those statistics would affect me, but it did. I was a part of those statistics. I was a part of that seventy-seven percent of people who got bullied and who tried to inflict pain and harm on myself.
When I ended sixth grade at my elementary school, it was the end of the road for the "easy years" and the beginning of my middle school years. After the last day of sixth grade it was the last time I got to see many of the friends that I had grown up with for half of my life. At the end of the summer I would be moving to a school that was in my home district and far away from my old school. It was time for me to move to another school away from my old friends, life, and pretty much everything I knew. This was the start of the most miserable days of my life; I had no idea that when I went to a new school I would have such a difficult time. I had the highest hopes going into middle school on that first day and granted, the first day wasn’t when everything in my life fell apart. It was in the middle of seventh grade that I felt my whole life, happiness, confidence, and self-respect slip right through my fingers.
I was the "new girl" in the school and I had no idea what to expect from this new place. It seemed like I walked into school one day with all I could wish for and the next with nothing and no one around for me. I remember walking through the halls of the middle school hearing whispers and feeling the burn of other students staring at me. I had not the slightest clue of why I had become a target of evil whispers of gossip. I was supposed to just be the new girl that no one noticed, not someone who people spread gossip about. Well at least that’s what I wished for at that point in time. I wished that no one knew I existed; I wished that I’d never stepped foot in the door on that first day of middle school.
The worst part was when it seemed like the one place I could count on to feel happy and safe (home), became corrupted to me. When I went on the computer one night at home I was visiting peoples blogs, and I stumbled upon a "hate page" about me! All I remember was running to my sister bawling my eyes out and pointing to the computer screen, telling her to read it. There it was right in front of my eyes, proof that I was not wanted in that school. That was when I believed nothing could hurt me anymore, but I was wrong, so wrong. Not too long after the hate blog I was faced with even more problems when I went to classes or looked in my locker and found hate letters and notes from my own "friends." The people that I didn’t just think of as my friends but as my best friends, it was them that betrayed me. My so-called best friends, the one’s that I cried to and trusted; they wrote nasty hate letters to me telling me to "*** off"
and leave them alone.
After all of that nonsense and drama, I didn’t think I would ever feel better about myself. In just one year I experienced so much pain, I didn’t think I would ever be able to trust another person. I had basically let my enemies win the best of me. I let them steal my self-esteem, went through depression, and I felt that I had no self-confidence left in me. Many people let what others think and feel define who they are in life, sadly I was one of those people. It was the lowest I had ever been in my life. I let others deteriorate my self-worth and I started to cut myself to ease my pain. Middle school was definitely no fairy tale for me but I can say that I did have my “fairy godmother” in a way; I had my family and my counselor. They were the ones whom I ran to when all I wanted to do was run away from school and never come back. It surely wasn’t my brightest hour when I started cutting myself, but it was because of my family and their support that I need to stop. I know that cutting myself was not a good idea and I would never go back to it, but in a way the scars on my arm are like "battle scars" to remind me every day to never let others define who I am to the world.
The bullying began to slow down in the middle of my eighth grade year, but no longer having the bullying itself didn’t make everything all better for me. Even when it stopped I had so much hatred towards other people, especially other girls. I began to shut people out of my life and never trusted others. I spent the remaining part of eighth grade and more than half of my high school years without many friends and building walls between me and the world. I don’t remember exactly when how it happened, but after almost three years of blocking myself from others I decided one day that it was going to stop. I was no longer going to let what hurt me in my past control my future and the present. The best decision I ever made throughout my whole life was deciding to trust other people again. It was not an easy process and it took many years to be able to do, but after the summer of 2010, I had a life changing experience. I volunteered at a summer fun program for little kids and I was forced to work with other people around my age. That was when I made the change. I decided to not let what hurt me in the past affect my chances at meeting people in the present. I began to slowly meet people, talk to them, and surely enough at the end of the summer I met my BFF (best friend forever). Meeting her not only opened my eyes to a happier life, but it also helped me realize what can happen if I stop being so guarded when it comes to trusting other people. I learned that it isn’t impossible to trust again. I also learned to rebuild my self-esteem and have a new fresh start.
Yes, it was four whole long years in the making, and it was a heck of a long process, but in the end I learned how to trust again and to regain my self-esteem. Bullying amongst teenagers still remains an ongoing issue but, on the bright side, I am happy to hear that people are now starting to stand up to bullying. There is an increased amount of bully awareness, so more people are starting to hear about the issue of bullying. Cyber bullying has also become a larger issue that people have recently raised awareness on. There is a movie called Cyber Bully that broke my heart while watching it. I am happy to hear that the issues that once affected me are been brought up for the public to hear about and be aware of. I hope that no one will ever have to go through any of the things that I had to experience. I have so much faith in the future and what it will bring. I have the highest expectations that we will continue to bring awareness to the world about bullying and possibly even stop it completely one day.
By: Eryn
Do Something
Posted: 12/2/2011
I've almost lost one of my best friends yesterday. Because he tried to commit suicide at school. All because he was targeted on the cheer team for being gay. He was picked on so much even though he was one of the most sweetiest kids I've ever met in my life. It's crossed the line because I don't see anyone trying to do something.....I'm 16 and I'm only one voice....I need help getting this out even more...Please for anyone reading this....My names Lee. And I'm asking you to help to change my own community and yours.
By: Lee
Instead of Cutting
Posted: 12/2/2011
When i was in 6th grade, i was a victim of bullying. Girl would beat me up, make fun of me, and verbally abuse me. I started Cutting myself, multiple times a day, and i couldnt tell anyone. I finally told my best friend, Samantha (Brooklyn), and she told me that i needed to find a different way to express my pain. I started writing músic, and becoming a Demi Lovato mega fan (Lovatic). I understood everything she said in her songs." Skyscraper" is an amazing life changing song, that makes me believe in myself more and more everytime i hear it.
Demi Lovato:
Demi, you are an inspiring, talented amazing young girl and i truly adore you. Thank-you for helping me with my diffucult time.
PACER organization and everyone that helped to make this site:
Thank you all, for fighting against bullying. Being a person who was hurt by bullying, it means alot. What you are doing is amazing. You are all helping so many people. I sincerely thank you.
Everyone who is a victim of bullying, or a suspect, words do hurt. I encourage you to try in all of your power, to make a change.
By: Michelle
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When I was in 6th Grade
Posted: 12/2/2011
So when I was in 6th grade, I was like very smart and had an answer for almost every question.
And so one day, some people, who I thought were my friends started copying me and founded the "nerd-army" with me as their leader. That hurt rather deep. Moreover, they didn't stop there, they created a website "in my honour" where they greatly announced me to be the uber-nerd, saying that I was only learning at home and stuff like that.
Yep, that took the little self-esteem I had away and burnt a deep hole into my soul. Of course I told someone and they where punished but still . . . I pretty much never answer in class by now and my marks in school sure suffered from that incident . . . which is 5 years in the past by now. Lacking self-esteem, my only friends are on the internet, scattered across the world. I don't have many real-life contacts.
Wow, I feel somehow stupid telling you all this. Thinking "Why would anyone be interested?"
But anyways, I'm gonna send it now.
Kind regards from Germany
By: Dennis
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Victimized
Posted: 11/22/2011
Imagine waking up and you’re the target they want
Imagine walking into a black hole you once called school
Imagine thinking the reasons behind the words that were said to haunt
Imagine the black hole entering your home, now it’s not right
Imagine being pushed into a locker filled with hatred and shame
Imagine doors that use to keep you safe suddenly shut
Imagine what life would be like without tormentors gaining fame
Imagine that your knife for food is now being used to cut
Imagine what life would be like with no emotions
Imagine walking in the dark with no light in sight because your head is put down
Imagine life crashing down; each time hitting new obstacles causing more commotion
Imagine people asking where your smile is because all you can show is a frown
Imagine the only light you notice is in the clouds
Imagine not having the strength to speak your voice
Imagine thinking leaving the world will make people proud
Imagine cowards wanting you to make this choice
Imagine putting yourself in the shoes of a person who has been through this
Imagine being a parent and knowing your child only thought peace was available through death
Imagine being a bystander and speaking up was an opportunity you missed
Imagine what this world would be like if these kids didn't take their last breath.
By: Elysse
Less Than
Posted: 11/7/2011
Bullying is about trying to make someone feel inferior for who they are
By: Anonymous
Report with Courage
Posted: 11/7/2011
My name is Katie, and I was a target of bullying all of my life except for my Senior year this year.
It had gone from "You're a Geek!" to "Hey Katie wanna go out with me?" And then after a few days the boy "Broke up" with me and then bullied me. From then on it went to two girls in my math class. I asked to use the restroom and the blonde girl yelled across the room "Why does SHE get to go? She's a ________!" and when i went to the restroom, and I stayed in the restroom for a few more minutes and cried until one of the teachers came and asked me whats wrong. I told her my story and she told the special ed teacher to bring me down to the office and tell the principal about the bullying going on in class.
And the Principal talked to the Main principal about the bullying and they both said that they would take care of it. And one of my friends brought my things down to the office and said "Katie, the main teacher didn't write a white card but the hearing aide teacher did, I hope you have a good rest of the day."
This year the bullying stopped because I kept on reporting without being afraid.
Do What I did. Report the bullying with courage!
By: Katie
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Finding Myself
Posted: 11/7/2011
I was in 6th grade. People would write things on the bathroom walls about me. I saw a note on the ground in from of my locker saying "nobody wants you alive". I was scared. I started cutting myself and I started barely eating anything. On the bus all the seats would be filled up except the one next to me. The bus driver would say "sit with her" and he would say "I would never sit with that"
People told me to die and one time I thought about running away. I packed my stuff together but I couldn't do it, I would stay loyal to my family. It stopped for a while but got worse in 7th grade when i transferred to a different school. I got pushed down the stairs and shoved in the halls. I would see comments on the internet about how ugly and fat i was. And that was when it hit me.
I started getting into a depression and i never came out of my room. One day at school i was thinking bout hurting myself when i would get home that evening and a girl came up to me and said hi. No one had really talked to me in almost 3 months and that one word, HI, it stopped me from everything - the pain, the dread, the worries, everything.
We are friends to this day.
Don't be a bystander, because it happens to everyone.
What if it was you?
By: Christyna
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