Quiet Please: April 16, 2010

Tomorrow is the National Day Of Silence, and I'm going quiet for the day because bullying, of any one, for any reason, is wrong, but bullying of children by children, by adults, is especially disgusting.
Stay silent and think of:

Phoebe Prince, bullied to death.
J Anoai, bullied because of his long hair.
Jayron Martin, bullied and beaten with a metal pipe by one of his classmates.
Jonathan Escobar, driven out of school because he's gay.
Carl Joseph Walker Hoover, bullied to death.
Steven Harmon, beaten by fellow students because he is gay.
A thirteen-year-old boy in Florida raped with a hockey stick by four classmates.
Jaheem Herrera, bullied to death.
Jeremiah Lasater shot himself in the head rather than face another day of being bullied.
Eric Mohat took his own life rather than face the bullies.

Stay silent and think of these names, and the hundreds of others, who can no longer speak.
This is a repost from last year's National Day Of Silence.



How to observe the Day of Silence:

Be silent
Talk
Wear red
Wear rainbow
Wear any color
Tweet the Silence
Silence your tweets
Blog the silence
Silence your blog

Whatever you do, be respectful, especially of others who are observing the Day of Silence, but bring attention to the issues of anti-LGBT name-calling, bullying and harassment in schools.
What is bullying? Bullying is when someone keeps doing or saying things to have power over another person. Some of the ways they bully other people are by: calling them names, saying or writing nasty things about them, leaving them out of activities, not talking to them, threatening them, making them feel uncomfortable or scared, taking or damaging their things, hitting or kicking them, making them do things they don't want to do.

Why do some people bully? There are a lot of reasons why some people bully. They may see it as a way of being popular, or making themselves look tough and in charge. Some bullies do it to get attention or things, or to make other people afraid of them. Others might be jealous of the person they are bullying. They may be being bullied themselves. Some bullies may not even understand how wrong their behaviour is and how it makes the person being bullied feel.

Why are some young people bullied? Some young people are bullied for no particular reason, but sometimes it's because they are different in some way--perhaps it's the colour of their skin, the way they talk, their size or their name. Sometimes young people are bullied because they look like they won't stand up for themselves.

Why is bullying harmful? Some people think bullying is just part of growing up and a way for young people to learn to stick up for themselves. But bullying can make young people feel lonely, unhappy and frightened. It makes them feel unsafe and think there must be something wrong with them. They lose confidence and may not want to go to school any more. It may make them sick. It may lead to them killing themselves.

What can you do if you are being bullied? Coping with bullying can be difficult, but remember, you are not the problem, the bully is. You have a right to feel safe and secure. And if you're different in some way, be proud of it! Spend time with your friends--bullies hardly ever pick on people if they're with others in a group. Ignore the bully. Tell them to stop. Walk away. Tell an adult you can trust.

What can you do if you see someone else being bullied? If you see someone else being bullied you should always try to stop it. If you do nothing, you're saying that bullying is okay with you. It's always best to treat others the way you would like to be treated. You should show the bully that you think what they're doing is stupid and mean. Help the person being bullied to tell an adult they can trust.