We need to put an end to bullying. In recent years bullying, for whatever reason (homophobia, sexism, racism, hate in general), has spiraled out of control. People are discriminating much more than they are appreciating and loving one another. This ongoing occurrence affects children, teens, young adults, and according to a study 90% of middle school students reported being victims of bullying. It really can happen to anyone, it happened to Miss New York and it could even happen to you. We need to put an importance on peace and love instead of hate and cruelty.
Bullying has a lasting effect on these victims. Most individuals who have been bullied suffer physically, and emotionally, and in most cases this is reflected in their school work. Students’ grades usually drop drastically, and they are no longer concerned about school but why they are being targeted by these bullies. Also, in some cases students feel threatened or scared to even attend school and they will miss weeks at a given time. The PACER National Bullying Prevention Center stated that more than 160,000 kids miss school every day out of fear of being harassed verbally and physically by other students. Being bullied can ultimately lead to depression and low self-esteem in the student’s later years. We need to make schools a safe environment to be, a place where children are not afraid to enter, a place where they are not concerned about being taunted or harassed by their peers. Some individuals argue that “kids will just be kids,” but what about the kids who cut themselves, cry themselves to sleep, fail out of school, and even take their own lives? Are kids just being kids in that situation? There is a fine line between joking around and harassing a student, we need to be able to distinguish that line.
In the last few years, schools have started