Haddon Twp. AD fired in dog-waste 'bullying' flap gets job backCherry Hill Courier PostThe district school board had contended Carr's behavior violated its anti-bullying policy and warranted dismissal from his tenured position. But Commissioner Chris Cerf this week said that punishment would go too far. Cerf said Carr's actions ...and mor […]
Advocate.comCould Video Games Be a Cure for Anti-LGBT Bullying?Advocate.com"[The bullies] just think that I'm really different and think that they can pick on me," Smith says. "They want me to change who I am. But I can't change who I am." Smith has never really had friends willing to stick up for him. Most of his pals get ... […]
Chantilly Girl Scout Wins Anti-Bullying ContestPatch.comA Girl Scout from Chantilly recently won a national contest sponsored by Girl Scouts of the USA, creating a public service announcement (PSA) that encourages girls to show what they would do to stop bullying. "I've been bullied before, and I know the ... […]
WTNHStudents serve as teachers in anti-bullying lessonsArizona Daily StarLike many middle school students, the seventh-graders in Dana Richards' language arts classes have either witnessed or been victims of bullying. The Anza Trail School students are aware of the various forms of harassment, from verbal and physical to ...Bullying forum planned at Con […]
High school bullying caught on tapeTHV 11The girl's mother, Tammy Hankins, said that bullying is an ongoing problem for her daughter, who is in the high school's Alternative Learning Program. Hankins admitted that her daughter has a history of outbursts in the classroom but feels bullying is ... […]
Evening ObserverBoard pres. makes bullying music videoWIVBSchool board president Sylvester Clearly has turned his message about bullying into a hip-hop song. It's called "Word to the Bully," and Thursday he shared his musical message with students at Forestville High School. "The idea actually originated from ...Forestville debuts anti-bu […]
Jacksonville charter school students rallied by Project SOS to stop bullyingFlorida Times-UnionOnly the students can change the school culture to not tolerate bullying, said Nikki DeMoya, a youth development specialist for the nonprofit. “Words are the most powerful thing you own. Your words can make someone's day or hurt them for the rest of ... […]
Blouin News BlogsAbercrombie & Fitch releases apology, plans to take 'concrete steps to ...TheCelebrityCafe.comAccording to People the apology states that A&F is “taking concrete steps to demonstrate our commitment to anti-bullying in addition to our ongoing support of diversity and inclusion. We want to reiterate that we sincerely regret and ap […]
Bullying of gay boy led parents to sue districtColumbus DispatchAfter repeated requests to school administrators to stop the bullying, the family sued the district in federal court. Though the district denied the claims, the lawsuit was settled in the family's favor. Now, two years after the bullying started, Will ... […]
Christian Science MonitorRand Paul on the Apple hearingWashington Post (blog)This much is clear from the first hour of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations hearing on Apple's steps to avoid paying billions in U.S. corporate income tax: It will be primarily an exercise in righteous indignation for the senators ...Why Rand Paul thinks Senat […]
Americans have been paying more attention to bullying in the past 10 years. New laws, conferences, research and conversation has proliferated. But the issue is not just an American one. Much of the world is concerned about bullying. Take the example of a bullying incident that occurred in Australia in March, 2011:
“We had an incident here last March when a school bully got beaten up by his victim, and the video of the incident went viral,” Scott Parlett, a student at the University of New South Wales said. “All of the television networks worked to put their own spin on the event, including interviews with parents and the kid who recorded the fight.”
The 42-second YouTube clip of the fight had more than 6 million views by February, 2012. Although there are some who believe that Casey Heynes, the initial victim of the bully, was wrong to retaliate, the consensus is that he is viewed as a hero for standing up to the bully.
“Casey has now transferred schools and is classified by others as a true hero thanks to publicity and being able to fight against bullying,” Kate Giulano, a student at the University of Newcastle said. “Justin Beiber was touring Australia when this happened and he flew Casey and his family to his Melbourne show and got Casey up on stage during the performance to explain to the audience how much of a hero Casey was for standing up to bullying.”
Parlett said that technology has changed the way the two students, watched from around the world, will move on from this incident.
“Unfortunately for Ritchard and Casey, the two boys involved in the incident, we are in this new technological world so that their 30 second fight went viral and will continue to reappear throughout their lives,” Parlett said. “The initial bully in this case is now sometimes seen as the victim because of the video going viral as everyone tries to have their two cents worth in commenting.”
Parlett has witnessed how technology has changed bullying. From his experiences of growing up in a small town, everyone knew everything about one another. Today, Parlett says that because of the Internet, everyone lives in a small town.
“I see bullying like a never ending spring. The bullying continues as the victims fight back and then they become bullies, and the initial bullies become victims especially in the new technological world with the Internet,” Parlett said.
“Fortunately when I was bullied there was not camera phones, the town I grow up in was so small that everyone knows everything. This is one of the reasons why I left my home town to further my education. I hated that everyone knew everything about you,” Parlett said. “Today it doesn’t matter. You can’t escape what happens because it’s posted for all to see online.”
Interest in bullying has increased markedly worldwide. News reference graphs on Google display how there was little interest in the subject up until 2010, but has since increased dramatically.
Despite being a regular news topic today, the United States ranks 10th in the world for searches and references on the web to bullying. The fact that America has seen many notorious bullies recently and still ranks behind nine other countries proves that bullying is a worldwide issue, and countries can learn from each other to help stop an endless cycle of violence and intimidation.
The New Bullying is available in digital and print editions.
Bullying in the News