I used to think that we, as a society, are over-sensitive to what we term as “bullying.” I can’t tell you the number of times I have heard this word, let alone how many times I have heard an anti-bullying lecture. Although I support these positive messages, they don’t mean as much to me because I rarely see overt bullying happening at South.
However, the stories of South students changed my mind. On an Oracle-conducted survey, 55 percent said that we are not over-sensitive to what we believe is bullying and shared their stories. Curious to learn more, I read personal testaments of people who were bullied or are currently being bullied.
With each one as heartbreaking as the next, I realized that no matter what we think, bullying is still a very real issue for some people. Stories range from name-calling to physical abuse.
These stories brought back tough memories when things were not so great for me. When I was young, being called the “fat girl,” a “geek” or the “teacher’s pet” was an everyday routine. It definitely has had lasting effects: I practically have no self confidence today. However, back then I didn’t see any way out of the bullying so I let it happen.
One day while relaying the recent comments to a new friend, she turned to me and said, “You can’t let people walk all over you like that. Stand up for yourself, Tori!” This may seem like a simple thing to say, but it changed my life. That simple realization that what was happening was wrong showed me that someone cared and that the name-calling could end.
From that day on, I did not let people put me down. I stood up for myself and soon my friends followed. No matter what you think, you are not alone and if you take the first step someone will follow.
The school has done a lot to encourage us to be kind to one another, by organizing school assemblies and implementing strict school rules against bullying. However, we need to be aware that every person’s definition of bullying is different. Even when you think you are joking, you never know how the other person will react to the words you throw their way.
Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think we need to always be concerned that we might hurt someone’s feelings. But when someone says you have gone too far, stop immediately and apologize. Although you may not always be aware of it, bullying hasn’t gone away and people experience it in different ways.
