Kids Have a Right To Go To School & NOT Be Bullied

I've gone on record many times about my thoughts on bullying.  It's no secret how I feel.  But just in case you don't know....I don't just hate bullies, I despise them. 

A few days ago, nine year-old Grayson Bruce of North Carolina was bullied by his classmates because of his My Little Pony backpack.  And by bullied, I mean punching, kicking, pushing and calling this kid names.  School officials eventually got involved and their solution?  Zero punishment for the bullies.  Instead, they told Grayson: "Stop bringing your backpack to school. It's making you a target for bullying."  *slow blinking*

Huh?  What kind of warped, twisted ass logic is that? 

I'll tell you what it is, it's wrong on sooooooo many levels.  Not only is it terribly wrong, it sends a dangerous message to kids who think it's OK to bully people.  It sends an even more damaging message to children who are being bully.  Side Note: It really ticks me off that adults made this decision.  Adults!  Incredibly irresponsible.   

Grayson Bruce and his mother.

Kids have a right to go to school and not be bullied.  As parents, school officials, teachers, aunts, uncles, godparents, friends, etc., we all have a responsibility to protect children from bullies.  We should all do our part to let bullies know that their behavior will not be tolerated or accepted.  And kids need to know there will be harsh repercussions if they choose to participate in any kind of bully behavior.  

See...I could never, ever be on a panel about bullying.  Nah.  No.  Nope.  I have a very unconventional way to deal with bullies.  I won't share it with because you'll judge me.  But, just know this... Bullies are cowards.  They operate on intimidation.  They're weak (never as tough as they seem). They're behavior is rooted in ignorance (any fool can be a bully).  

Once you really understand these things, you see bullies in a totally different light.  Your entire attitude and perspective will shift and...you will act accordingly.  Trust me.  

* steps down off of my soapbox *


FYI....Grayson's mother withdrew him from that school and he is now being homeschooled. He has received an outpouring of support and launched a Facebook page (Support For Grayson) that campaigns against bullying. 

Social Media 101: Beware Of Twitter Bullies

I'm a news junkie, so I love Twitter.  It gives me a variety of up-to-date information at lightening speeds.  I get tidbits of national news, local politics, business tips and pop culture in a matter of seconds.  If you're in PR and you're not using Twitter as a resource?  *side eye* 

Anywho... I enjoy Twitter.  But like everything, it's not perfect.  Case in point: A lot of people use Twitter to bully, degrade and harass folks.  They sit behind their computer (lurking, I imagine), spewing out mean and hateful comments whenever they want.  Twitter bullies.  *sigh*  Unfortunately, most them do this on a daily basis.  And what's more troubling is, a lot of Twitter bullies have a large number of followers, which essentially fuels their twisted egos.   

They think it's cool to make fun of celebrities, laugh at children's shortcomings and tell people they're ugly, fat and unwanted.  I personally don't know what's going on with your spirit that allows you to put someone else down on a regular basis.  You've got to be a sad bucket of broken dreams to do that, and enjoy it.  

In 2012, a study showed that there were 15,000 bully-related tweets posted every day. That's more than 100,000 tweets that pollute Twitter each week.  Terrible.  But there are things we can do to stop this Twitter bully nonsense: 

• Don't engage with them or acknowledge them (Ignore them)
  
  
• Block them (Prevents a person from following you or seeing your timeline)
  
  
• Reporter them to Twitter (Twitter has a strict policy about bullying, abuse & harassment)

Most important, always focus on the positive.  Twitter is not a bad thing.  Don't let others ruin it for you.