Attention Bullies!

According to statistics, 1 in 7 students in grades K-12 is either a bully or a victim of bullying (MBNBD.org). Bullying is an aggressive behavior between students that involve physical strength, access to embarrassing information, and popularity to control others repeatedly. Bullying is notorious for harming others for a long period of time. It has affected so many students because people fail to do something to prevent it, but it must end now. Numbers of people getting bullied in schools in the United States are rising every month. Anyone caught bullying should be immediately expelled from school with zero tolerance.

So many students are missing school because of bullying. 15% of all school absenteeism is directly related to fears of being bullied at school (MBNBD.org). Why should students sacrifice their education because of bullies? Schools should be a second home for students, but it is turning out to be an uncomfortable environment for most of them. They should be able to come to school without fear of being bullied or hurt emotionally and physically. If the victims keep missing school due to bullies, they will eventually just drop out of school completely. At a certain point in their education life some student may feel that it is better to stay at home rather than gaining knowledge.  

 Bullying doesn’t only affect the victim at school but also at home and other places. It doesn’t only consist of physical strength, but also words and phrases that can affect many students and may leave a scar deep within their heart. Constant bullying could lower students self-esteem by making them feel insecure and out of place. It is possible that students will become emotionally depressed then they could start hurting themselves.

If bullies continue to keep hurting other people, eventually students will be tired of the constant hurt and fear and it is possible that students will want to take away their life.

            Suicide takes the lives of over 30,000 Americans every year. Over half of all suicide attempts are committed using a firearm. 15% of people that are depressed die because of suicide. On average, about 1 person dies by suicide every 16 minutes (sites.google.com). Over 14 percent of high school students have considered suicide, and almost 7 percent have attempted it. Bully victims are between 2 to 9 times more likely to consider suicide than non-victims. According to statistics reported by ABC News, nearly 30 percent of students are either bullies or victims of bullying, and 160,000 kids stay home from school every day because of fear of bullying (bullyingstatistics.org).

Amanda Todd was a victim of bullying. She made an immature mistake online, and that mistake grew and everybody knew about it. She was taunted, harassed, and lost all her friends in her school. So, she transferred schools and made new friends, but then that mistake had been spread all over again. The nightmare returned and grew worse. Like before people hurt her by using words that caused her to cut herself and become depressed. She would eat lunch all alone in the library. Even when she left the city to go to a different school, that mistake followed her. Once a group of kids came and started to curse on her, and abuse her. She was lying in a ditch until her father came to pick her up. She went home and drank bleach as an attempt to commit suicide. Luckily, she failed, but that wouldn’t stop her from doing it again because her classmates and other students, said it to her face, that they were happy that she drank bleach and almost died.

Amanda Todd had no reason whatsoever to live. She made a video explaining her story, and how she felt. Then after four hours she was found dead and proven that she has committed suicide. A young life had been taken away because no one tried to do something, or get rid of the bullies. This needs to stop now! How many more lives are going to be taken away because we fail to do something? The numbers are increasing, and the lives are decreasing! Unkind words are being said from the bullies and deeply hurting the victims. Brutal punches, and pushes are bringing the victims pain and fear. Anxieties and depressions are forming. Not so long will they be committing suicide. How can we stop the bullies, and save the victims from hurting themselves, or even worse taking their life away before it is too late?

Some believe that immediately expelling the bullies is a harsh, quick decision and that we should give them another chance to prove themselves that they can change. This position is weak because students will be informed in the beginning of school about the zero tolerance for bullying rule. That was their chance to change and actually have a heads up, but if they already knew the rule then why have they chose that path to hurt and bully people.

“People have no idea how long something they say can stay in one’s mind” (prideandinspiration.tumblr). Even a slight phrase could hurt someone’s feelings. It may sound very little but it actually stays stuck in that person’s brain for a long time. That may not get the person expelled, but if it is continuously said then it will. So many students are not able to get their education because of distractions and fear by classmates or other students. That should end by eliminating bullies out of the school completely and putting all our effort for students to feel safe and welcomed at their school. Always remember that hurting someone else continuously may lead, the person doing so, to be a murderer some day.

Reference List

MBNBD. “Statistics and Facts.” MBNBD.org. 2 Nov. 2013.

Google Sites. “Suicide Prevention: Learn the Facts.” sites.google.com. 2 Nov. 2013.

Bullying Statistics. “Bullying and Suicide.” bullyingstastistics.org. 2 Nov. 2013.