You may have come across social media videos of some people mistreating others either verbally or physically—or both. You may have even had to watch this happen in person, which can feel confusing and scary. When a person uses their power and influence to hurt…
I recently watched a video about a girl who was severely beaten by five girls at the same time at a fast food restaurant in Brooklyn, New York. I was extremely shocked and couldn’t help but say “oh my gosh is this real?!” I couldn’t…
Bullying anyone is hurtful, especially if it makes the victim feel like no one cares. Some teens are particularly vulnerable to bullying. Did you know that LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) youth are twice as likely to be bullied or physically attacked as other…
Imagine the following situation: You’re at a party, and you see two people fighting, then one person hits the other. Many other people witness this, yet no one does anything about it. This is known as the “Bystander Effect,” when the presence of others somehow…
Not everyone is bullied, so some of us may not realize that it’s a big problem. Bullies tend to attack the most vulnerable people and that’s what makes them so dangerous. Victims of bullying tend to have low self-esteem to begin with, so they typically don’t have…
I heard it again last weekend on the street while I was enjoying the unseasonable sunshine: one teenager said to another “that’s so gay!” I thought people were moving beyond this! We have made a lot of progress in the past few years, and most…
Most teens in Massachusetts have gotten a lesson or workshop on bullying since an anti-bullying legislature was passed due to the suicide case of Phoebe Prince, a young teenager from South Hadley, Massachusetts. Today in my English class we were reading an article called “The…
Unfortunately, bullying seems to be a part of growing up. In a sad way, it almost seems like a natural evolutionary instinct for some people. It’s like they need to be mean to make themselves feel better. People who bully others are sad individuals, and…
I know you must have seen some of your classmates wearing the color purple yesterday and wondered why. October 20th, 2010 was “Spirit Day”, a day to remember six young men who took their lives because they were reportedly bullied for being gay. The organization…
I recently read two articles on the Children’s Hospital Boston “Thrive” blog, and was very touched by them. The articles were about a set of identical twins; one of whom is now transgender. Ryan (who now goes by the name Sylvia) has had a very hard…