Last night I was watching the local news and the reporters were discussing the death of a young girl that took her own life after years and years of bullying. Unfortunately, this story does not stand alone. It was so sad to see photos of this young, pretty girl smiling for the camera and clips of her family- heartbreak strewn across their faces.
The story didn't end there. A facebook page was established in her honor and within days it had been taken over by the most foul and terrifying messages I have ever read. People were/are actually taunting her in her death. I can't even believe my eyes. It's a full on battle between cyber bullies and people with hearts. Good vs. Evil, really. Why facebook will not take the page down is a whole separate issue.
It makes me feel really hopeless that there are people out there that would go even further than petty bullying.. to bully someone after they've died. I can't. It's sick.
That poor girl.. and just as heartbreaking- her family.
I was a victim of bullying when I was younger. I was a happy little 6th grader with lots of friends until 1 morning when the ring leader of the group (my best friend for years) turned everyone against me. My mom was there to bear witness.. it happened at the bus stop. No one talked to me for the rest of the year. Luckily, I found new, real friends who I am still close with today and also luckily for me- middle school came before the internet found it's way into homes or I'm sure it would have been worse.
I think what got me through the silent treatment and taunts was that my family knew about it and had my back. I cried every morning and begged my mom not to make me go to school, but I knew no matter what happened my sister, mom, and dad would be there. I don't know if I would have told my mom if she hadn't seen it herself. I don't think most kids that are bullied talk about it at all.
So I felt lucky today. Lucky that however miserable middle school was, it was 3 years out of my life, and I'm probably stronger for it.
Sadly, I don't see bullying coming to an end. I think there are ways of battling it though. I really don't know how things are being handled in schools today, but kids should be taught how to handle bullying. They should be taught to speak up and talk to someone.. a hotline, something. Silence doesn't solve anything.
I hope that the people out there that are being bullied today have the courage to ask for help.
And I hope help is given.
I think bullying is one of the most disgusting things you can do to someone :(
ReplyDeleteI so can relate with this post. I used to be a happy camper throughout school, but then I got into college and was bullied to the point that I almost dropped out on my junior year. Thank God that's all in the past and I grew stronger from it.
ReplyDeletewww.therecordologist.blogspot.com
The year before we left to go to Taiwan we had a girl who committed suicide because of bullying. I honestly think that her death has effected that community and family more then she'll ever know. Sadly....
ReplyDeleteI was bullied during school....most of my life. I am so thankful that the internet wasn't around while I was in elementary, middle and high school. It's hard to go through bullying in your face but it's even harder to go through bullying when it's in e-mails, texts, or on facebook, etc because you can be a lot crueler when you don't see the emotions you evoke from the person you are bullying or making fun of!
Sarah I'm sorry you were bullied. But I'm thankful you had your family and found some true friends. That's always important.
This was a great post... thank you for sharing.
ReplyDeleteSo very sad what is happening in schools via the internet these days...
This is insane. I can't believe how evil some people can be. And in her death?! It's disgusting, really disgusting..
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you posted it though, we SHOULD be reminded of things like this once in a while. Just so we can stop and think about it. crazy.
i was bullied as well. so, so much. it still affects me to this day.
ReplyDeletei can't believe what you've just said. young kids? taunting after passing? it's incredibly sad..
this is terrible terrible news. this is so sad. i, like many of you, have heard of many of these stories and each time it brings up personal feeling and thoughts about bullying when i was in junior high and some throughout high school. it makes me think about children i may have in the future and the situation i want them to be in. i feel sad that when i think about junior high the first thoughts are of the girl who continued to follow me around school threatning me. so sad. i feel so much pain for this girl. i wish we could all be there to help her. i'm actually really glad for the internet, because although there is cyber bullying, i also think there is more good through the help that is avaliable or even blogging. people are able to meet eachother with similar interests and feel connected and have something exciting to look forward to. ...so many thoughts. thank you for posting this, sarah!
ReplyDeletei feel like i could type about this for days! haha. oh- one more thing. i work in a preschool and even see kids as young as 3 1/2 - 4 show signs of bullying. :(
ReplyDeleteThis is so sad and terrible and has me sick to my stomach. I HATE bullying. I don't hate many things in the world but that is one thing I can't stand. My little one's are going to get a very serious talking to when they get older about bullying & being bullied. This bullying..it just breaks my heart.
ReplyDeleteThis brought tears to my eyes. I was often bullied in school too, I was always the 'shy girl who loved school a bit too much.' And like you, thankfully the cyber world wasn't really a big thing back in middle school days ... I could only imagine how things would've been. What really worries me now ... is how things will be for my daughter who will be in 1st grade next year. She's smart, pretty, polite and respectful. We have raised her to not be mean or rude to anyone, no matter what. But what happens when someone's rude to her or is trying to bully her around? I don't want her backing down, but I also don't want her stooping to their level. Ahhhh. It's a constant worry of mine :/
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness. What a horrible thing to do! I can't fathom what makes someone want to bully someone else. There are already so many terrible things going on in this world, why would you want to add to it? And the "good" that it gives someone is a false feeling that will only last as long as that moment. Thank you for sharing this Sarah, I wish we could help somehow.
ReplyDeleteprecious post. so sad to think about. i went to a private school but wasn't spared from bullying. it was really hard. i was already shy and that didn't help! i am happy to be a new follower. your blog is really pretty to look at!
ReplyDeleteWhat beautiful words you have for such a necessary message.
ReplyDeleteThat young girl's story broke my heart, and I talked about it with some of the high schoolers I teach. They could all relate to it, either personally or through someone they knew. It is so terrifying to think about in their world.
so awful. bullying is really so tragic. it's so important to teach our children to be empathetic and love others.
ReplyDeleteAs a teacher, I am inspired to stop the bullying and teach for tolerance. Let's pray it makes a difference. I'm sorry about your middle school experience. I found high school girls to be just as damaging. Glad you took up the very concerning issue.
ReplyDeletethat is sickening... seriously.
ReplyDeletei too was bullied but I cant imagine having the internet around back then, that is so scary
What a heartbreaking story... Always makes me wonder what kind of person sits behind that computer. They must be in a pretty terrible situation themselves to feel the need to do something like that, I think. I don't know.
ReplyDeleteI hope a story like this does make teachers and parents more aware.
such a beautiful post. this reminds me of our little emails back and forth. bullying is something that continues on into our adult lives, unfortunately. and it needs to stop.
ReplyDeletethis horrifies me that they were still vandalizing her facebook page after her death. i really pray for those people to grow and be more confident in their skin; to take a good hard look into their lives and snap out of it!
thank you for sharing!
Such a heartbreaking story. I was the subject of bullying for a lot of my life. Thankfully because of my parents love and support and 2 good friends, I was able to overcome severe depression. It's hard to overcome after hearing for so long how "awful" you are!
ReplyDeleteYou've got a collection of such lovely images on your site. Nice work! I noticed the necklace collection in this post too - love it!
ReplyDeleteSadly, one of the problems of bullying is that the bullied rarely gets to effectively speak out about it. It's quite fortunate that you found good friends back then - people who can support you and be there. That kind of thing can help give you the internal strength to stay strong, and even stand up against the bully.
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