Bullying

Cierra Gibson
11th Grade
Martin Luther King High School

Do you know why people are bullies? The reason why people are bullies is because they may be jealous of another person. They could be worried about something that is going on at home or that is happening to them. They hang around with other people to they try and fit in, they might like the sense of power that bullying gives you. They don’t have good self-esteem or they don’t like really like there self so they try to make you feel like you don’t like your self to. They might not have many friends or they are being abused or mistreated by adults and siblings in their lives.

I bet you say why am I being bullied? One reason is you could have just been in the wrong place at the wrong time. At school you could just be a teacher’s pet and your bully doesn’t like that. You could have more friends than them or that person could have been bullied before. The person that they bullied before could have moved and they are trying to find some one else they can bully now.

Name-calling and teasing are forms of verbal bullying. When someone kicks or punches us it hurts us on the outside, while when someone teases us or calls us names, it hurts us on the inside. In many classrooms teasing and name-calling are the most common forms of bullying. Unfortunately, because they don’t leave scratches or bruises and often happen when there are no adults around, they can go unnoticed by parents or teachers.

Exclusion or leaving someone out is another form of bullying. This is when a person or group of people won’t let someone play with them, join a group activity or will invite everyone to come to a party or take part in a game except for one person on purpose. All children (and adults!) like to fit in, have friends and feel accepted. When we exclude someone we make them feel unlikable and very alone. As you go through school, it’s understandable that you won’t be great friends with everybody in your class and there are some kids you just won’t have things in common with or will have trouble getting along with. However, this is no excuse, for purposefully excluding someone.

Kicking, punching, pinching, pushing are all forms of physical bullying. It is never okay to hurt someone physically even if they have hurt you. While it can be very tempting to hit someone if they have hurt you in some way, this is not going to make you feel better or solve the problem.

Threatening is another form of verbal bullying. When someone threatens someone else, they say we are going to do something hurtful, even though they may never do it. Being threatened is very scary and hurtful. The victims are always afraid the person is going to carry out their threats, but they often don’t know when or where this may happen. They start each day worrying they are going to come to school and find everyone talking about them or they are going to get beat up.
Cyber-bullying is bullying that takes place on the internet or with cell phones. It can take the form of many of the above forms of bullying: name-calling or teasing, exclusion or threatening. The only difference is instead of happening face-to-face, it takes place on-line via websites, chat-rooms or text-messaging.
If you are being bullied, tell an adult. Parents, teachers, any authority figure should be able to help you with your problem. Don’t just let this happen to you. Don’t be a victim of bullying.