Lori Hile - Bullying

• When 15-year-old Phoebe Prince moved from Ireland to a small town in Massachusettsin 2009, she quickly captured the attention of the boys at school. She went out withTodd Mulveyhil, captain of the football team, which angered Todds ex-girlfriend.She and her friends began calling Phoebe names. They knocked books out of her handsand shoved her into lockers. They bombarded her with threatening phone messages andFacebook posts, some even encouraging Phoebe to kill herself. On January 14, 2010,Phoebe walked home from school and hanged herself.
• In 2010, a group of boys wearing school uniforms led another boy across a schoolyardand struck him in the head. The boy fell to the ground, where he lay crumpled. Theboys filmed the incident and posted it on a video-sharing site.
• In 2011, Emily Nakanda, 15, cracked her knuckles before grabbing her classmate Annaby the hair and putting her in a headlock. Then she threatened to tear out Annashair. She also punched Anna and shoved her to the ground. In case anyone missed theincident, which took place in a London alley, Emilys friends filmed it on a cellphone and forwarded footage to their peers .

Bullying is normal.

False . Bullying may be common, just like child abuse and domestic abuse . That doesnot mean, however, that it is normal or acceptable. Bullying is antisocial behaviorthat should not be tolerated.

Bullying beyond the playground

Bullying peaks in middle school, then tapers off in high school. However, that doesnot stop some adults from bullying, at home and in the workplace. One in six employeesexperiences bullying at work, which makes it more common than sexual harassment .Workplace bullies often spread damaging or false rumors about their coworkers orcriticize them in front of important people. These actions can increase employeestress and illness and make for a miserable work environment. Many deserving employeesalso lose the opportunity for advancement if they have been bad-mouthed by a bully.Unfortunately, there are few laws against this type of behavior, and most companieshave no rules against it. The good news is that learning how to combat bullies nowwill make it much easier to handle workplace bullies later in life.

Everyone has disagreements. Some conflicts can even be healthy, because they canhelp you learn how to resolve problems. However, it is important not to mistake bullyingfor normal, acceptable conflict.

So, what exactly is bullying? Is it punching or shoving someone? Taunting or name-calling?What about excluding another person from a group? Making racist remarks? Bullyingcan take any of these forms. It is most commonly defined as any ongoing physical,social, or verbal abuse that is intended to harm the victim (often called a target),who is less powerful in some way.

There are three main elements that make bullying bullying:

1. An imbalance of power between the bully and the target : The child who bullies maybe stronger than his or her victim, or better at flinging insults or threats. Thebully may also be more confident than the target and have more friends, or more popularfriends, to back him or her up. This is called social power.
2. Intent to harm : A bully does not accidentally step on your toe and then say sorry.A bully stomps on your foot in a deliberate attempt to hurt or upset you. The bullymay apologize, but the apology is insincere.
3. Ongoing aggression : Bullying is rarely a single occurrence. Usually the bully repeatshis or her behavior, often in the same places, as a way to establish dominance. Manyof these spots lack adult supervision, which allows kids to bully without gettingcaught. Bullies often threaten to make the targets life miserable if he or she evertells an adult.