You have all seen the guy with a big backpack and thick glasses. Chances are you labeled him as a “nerd.” Perhaps you’ve see a lady with blond hair and labeled her as dumb. Little things like this may seem funny and harmless, but when one lives through those things on a daily basis it becomes tiring.
A person can be physically, emotionally and mentally bullied. It doesn’t matter what kind of bullying is being done, at the end of the day a person is being harmed and in some cases the result becomes fatal.
“Bullying has changed from excluding others from a group, to verbal harassment, embarrassing people in public to putting others physically in danger,” Jim*, Counselor of Boys Town National Hotline said.
This is exactly what happened to Salt Lake Community College student Laura Jensen. Jensen had a girl follow her around with a knife and had to move because it was getting out of hand. Phoebe Prince and Megan Meier, two young girls whose story touched people’s lives across the country, felt that the only way to put a stop to all the bullying in their life was by taking it away.
Imagine if your best friend felt like no one understood her – that she is alone in this world and even tried to take her life away to fix the problem. That is what millions of people are experiencing due to the effects of bullying.
“Those who are being bullied feel worthless,” Jim* said. “And sometimes they feel like they actually deserve it.”
It has been said that bullies don’t feel good about themselves and they usually bully others while they are in a group to feel stronger. Bullies usually pick on “the weakest” and hurt their self-esteem.
Student Samuel Featherstone said he has been bullied – but the guy who bullied him was a “Dirt bag.”
“I didn’t mind him much because he was an idiot,” Featherstone admitted.
Featherstone said that the guy would call him names and push him around just to get a reaction. Featherstone said he would just ignore the bully.
Bullying will continue to happen, but there are ways that one can try to put a stop to it by not encouraging the bully and by listening to the people who are affected by bullies. If you or a loved one is being bullied, Boys Town National Hotline can help. Talk to a counselor for free of charge at 1-800-448-3000. Counselors are available 24 hours a day.
*Last name not provided