Ever since I can remember, bullying has always been a part of my life. If it wasn’t me called anorexic everyday in elementary school, it was me being known as super-nerd in my teens. The bullying isn’t what hurt me the most; it was the fact none of the people I called friends would ever help. A news article that took place back in June of last year has re-surfaced, with hypersensitive parents commenting about the bullying their kids have faced, which quite frankly, shouldn’t be considered as such.
Two teen boys from a Regina school were charged under the Anti-Bullying Bylaw last year after filming a younger special needs student in his underwear while getting ready for gym class. The two teens asked the special needs student to do various things on camera, all while laughing. This video was then uploaded onto the internet. One of the boys pleaded guilty when the case went to court, receiving a $300 fine. The other was to take part in an anti-bullying program.
This story is once again circulating the internet, with parents rallying behind the bylaw and cheering on the charges that were laid; hoping for similar punishment in their children’s lives. This story made me sad, not only for the unusually cruel behaviour of the teens, but for the people who actually think this bylaw will work as is. Slapping a fine into the hands of a child is meaningless; money means nothing to them. Guess who ends up being punished? The parent. The parent is likely the one to pay the fine. An anti-bullying program is a step in the right direction, but it is far too objective in my opinion. Punishment in this area should be immersive. In this case for example, instead of a program and fine, the guilty parties should have to spend time teaching and being around special needs students for a period of time. This way, the teens get first-hand experience dealing with the struggles of being a caregiver, as well as understanding the difficulties that these students face. A program can only teach so much, but interaction and experience are the best teachers of all.
On another matter, the parents and other adults commenting on this story need a good shake. There are far too many people who are quickly offended these days, especially now since we are capable of instant online communication. It seems we have let the online world become larger than life, and in turn, the words we see online have become larger than life. We become offended by the words of one person. Our ancestors that dealt with famine, poverty and war would laugh in our faces! These adults that get offended easily transfer this behaviour to their children. Since children learn by mimicking the behaviour of their parents, they mimic this behaviour as well; it is not exempt. I think this is why we see so many kids that have social problems now. They lack the skills to deal with these issues when they arise, and eventually they become a struggle. They get offended, but cannot do anything about it; internally or externally. Once the struggle gains enough momentum to involve the parents, these parents also lack the knowledge to properly deal with child bullies. Then they passively-aggressively cry wolf for authorities to hear. Parents should be doing their jobs as parents. We aren’t all perfect, but the least we can do is be aware and educate. It is our child’s duty to deal with their bullies, because let’s face facts; bullying doesn’t stop when you grow up. Bullying turns into workplace disputes. Bullying has existed since we all first started cramming lots of people into one place. In my personal experience, it sucks that I have self-esteem issues that have stemmed from bullying, but I take comfort in knowing that I am a better person because of it. Not my parents, not my teachers, not my peers, but me. I learned how to deal with ignorant people, when to keep my mouth silent, when to speak out and learned jealousy is usually the main cause of bullying.
Sure, bullying is a problem, but it isn’t the epidemic we are making it out to be. Most of the social problems plaguing our children are due to our own lack of education and understanding. Situations that get into public like the above should be rectified by the law, but with punishment better suiting the guilty.
