Summary:
Recently, 15-year-old Bart Palosz, from Connecticut, put a shotgun
to his head and ended his life due to bullying. 12-year-old Joel Morales of New
York hung himself last year, and 17-year-old Rehtaeh Parsons of Nova Scotia,
Canada committed suicide by hanging herself earlier this year. Why were these
teens targeted, though? What did these three young people have in common? Bart
and Joel were both bullied because of their size and the way in which they spoke.
Rehtaeh was bullied after accusing four teens of sexually assaulting her. These
three children were "bullied to death." Many schools have come up
with a "zero tolerance policy" for bullying, but this obviously isn't
enough. Cowetta Intermediate High School in Oklahoma had such a policy in
place, but just earlier this year 15-year-old Triston Stephens shot and killed
himself in the school's bathroom due to repeated bullying. "Why do
children who are bullied today experience overwhelming feelings of isolation
and despair, such that they feel compelled to end their young lives rather than
endure any more torment?" Francey Hakes, the author of the article asks.
Because of cyberspace, bullying can be amplified immensely through hateful
comments, tweets, and posts on social networking sites. To the victim, it seems
that the "whole world is out to get her." Teenagers feel the need to
be wanted and fit in, so when they can't achieve these things they become a
target and they feel that "everyone they know is participating in the
hate." This desperation builds up until finally they see no other
alternative to suicide. Schools should take greater efforts to monitor students
cyber-behavior and how this is affecting those around them. Parents are also
responsible for discussing with their young teens the importance of
communication if they are being bullied or see someone else being bullied. But
parents should also maintain a close eye on their own children to make certain they
aren’t participating in the bullying. Lives depend on us. It's not just
"mean girls" or "boys being boys," children are being
abused and tormented, and it cannot and should not go on any longer.
Analysis:
This is a topic that I can really relate to, and I think many
teens would be able to say the same. This article really hit home. Coming from
a place where bullying was "prohibited" but yet not dealt with, I
understand the repercussions of bullying and how it can leave someone scarred
for the rest of his life. Bullying is a reoccurring problem that needs to come
to an end, but yet it continues. Schools never confront the problems, because
they want to believe they are nonexistent. This goes the same with the parents
of children who bully; they don't want to believe that their child is a bully,
so they choose not to believe it and their child will continue to hurt others.
Whether a child is being bullied physically, mentally, emotionally, or all of
the above, it is still bullying. The misconception is that bullying has to be
physical but this isn't true. The first sentence in the article begs the
question, "Can cruel words really kill?" and then goes on to say,
"The answer, unfortunately, is yes." Although I know this article is
based on the opinions of Francey Hakes, I find that it is very relevant, accurate,
coherent, and current. Bullying wasn't always this bad. Technology has made it
so much worse. I hope this can be brought under control, and fewer children
will die as a result of bullying.
Here is the link to my article:
http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/05/opinion/hakes-bullying/index.html?hpt=us_mid
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