Bullying is a growing problem here in the United States. There are more and more cases of bullying coming to light, and children suffering from it, some even taking their lives because of it. It’s sad to see so many young lives extinguished because of a lack of understanding and acceptance from those around them. Bullying can be overcome, though, and not allowed to win. I should know. I was bullied every day in middle school.

I recently watched an episode of Glee, and there was a quote that made me really put bullying, and why people do it, into perspective. The quote is from a boy to Kurt, one of the only openly gay people on the show, after Kurt was bullied by one of the football players for being gay. The quote is as follows: “Prejudice is just ignorance, Kurt. This is your chance to teach them.”

A lot of the problem with bullying comes from bullies not understanding the ones they are bullying. Children are bullied for a number of reasons such as being overweight, being a nerd, having divorced parents, etc. What it all comes down to is that kids are bullied because they are different, and don’t fit in with the ideals of the popular kids. When I was in middle school, the popular girls would call me a “slut”, kick me in the backs of my knees, invite me to play games with them and then laugh when I ran slower than them. But worst of all they would make fun of me because my parents were divorced. The worst instance of bullying happened when I was in eighth grade, and it was an experience I will never forget.

Most thirteen year old girls are excited to get invited to parties because it’s cool, especially those for popular kids. I was invited to a girl’s birthday party, and I remember the group of boys telling me that this one boy, who was the hottest boy in the class, wanted to be my boyfriend. “He” would instant message me, flirt with me, and told me that he wanted to dance with me and be my boyfriend at the party. I got to the party and he was there. I went to him, and he told me that he would never be interested in a fat ugly cow like me. He and his friends had played the cruelest joke on me, and I left the party in tears. I thought about not living after that. I thought about ending it all. I didn’t, and I’m glad I didn’t.

My mom was a good outlet for me, and I spent a lot of the time in the counselor’s office at school, mostly because of my parents divorce, but it helped a lot. Knowing that people cared helped me to get through the bullying. The problem is that now there aren’t a lot of people out there who want to help those being bullied. I’ve seen a lot of instances where the kids being bullied were blamed, and not the bully. That kind of behavior would discourage any kid from standing up for him/herself. There is hope, though, and a lot of kids don’t realize that these days.

Kids are mean. We all know that. Adults are mean, but adults have a lot more life experience to brush off bullying and realize that it doesn’t matter. The fact that someone has to go out of their way to be mean to you, means that there is something about you that they could be jealous of, or fighting themselves. It sucks to realize this, but sometimes the bullies are taking out their frustrations on others. That doesn’t make it right, but it happens.

Another problem in dealing with bullying is the lack of information available to kids to be able to deal with these problems. There are hotlines, internet sites, forums, and counselors, all available to reach out and make sure that no one has to suffer. And if they are, that they don’t have to suffer alone. Kids also don’t realize that there is so much more to live for, and that bullying can be overcome. It’s sad to see adults caving to bullying as well, but everyone faces prejudice and bullying in different ways. Prejudice often stems from fear of the unknown, and of a change to what people know to be “normal.” When something out of the norm happens, or a change occurs, people often don’t know how to handle it and often cluster around those who are in agreement with them.

We, as a whole, need to learn to embrace ourselves and each other. We are all different for a reason. We are different so that we can enrich each other’s lives, and appreciate the different strokes of life we have all taken. We should teach each other what we know, and why we enjoy the things that make us different. If we were all the same, life would be boring. Bullying, by both adults and children, needs to end. No one should feel left out in this already lonely and hateful world.

For those of you who are being bullied, or have children being bullied, please seek out help and do not take your own life. Do not let them win the battle of your life, because your life is yours and yours alone. If you know someone in need of help, please reach out to them and share the following information listed below.

Here are some phone numbers and links to help deal with bullying:

1-866-SPEAK UP (773-2587)

http://suicidehotlines.com/

http://www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org/?gclid=CKfr2Piw1qYCFVBe2godpSelHw