Bullying

Today I watched a Youtube video of 15 year-old Amanda who told her story of being cyber bullied.  When she was in the 7th grade she ended up making a mistake.  How many of us have done that?  Someone asked her to flash herself.  She did.  Only later did that come back and haunt her.  Someone posted the photo everywhere.  She moved.  But the photos followed her.  She ended up trying to kill herself.  People taunted her telling her to try harder.

My heart broke.

Right now I'm in tears.  Why?

Amanda killed herself on Wednesday.

And still people are posting that it was her fault.  It makes me ill.

http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Canada/2012/10/11/20276656.html

Amanda's story brings up painful memories of when I was 14.  I was the one the kids decided to bully.  That year was the worse.  I was spit on, pushed into a locker, taunted, hit, and even during a PE dance class, slapped so hard I fell.  The PE teacher looked the other way.  The kids in my church also taunted me.  Add to that the sexual abuse I was going through.  I felt so alone.

I seriously swore if I could survive 8th grade?  I could survive anything.

I was also very suicidal.  I just remember how numb I felt.  I later learned that helped me to cope.

My heart weeps for Amandas of the world.  If anything I hope her story will help others realize how painful it is to be bullied.  That it's not cool to taunt and bully another person.


Comments

Charlie N. Holmberg said…
That is absolutely terrible! Both for Amanda and for you. I am so sorry. I've had a bully in 5th grade, but never anything as bad as that. I can't imagine, and I certainly can't understand what would drive someone to do things like that to another human being.

Cyber bullying is horrifying to me especially because it's so much easier to be cruel to someone you don't have to see face-to-face, or to anonymously berate a person. Not excited to have my teenagers exposed to that. It's sickening and so, so wrong.

I hope Amanda's family will be able to heal and that all is right with you, now. Seriously, this bullying tirade is pathetic and needs to stop.
3:43 PM
Kim Baccellia said…
I can't believe how terrible bully is now. Back when I was a teen, there wasn't any social media. Now? It's posted everywhere. I also can't believe how many people believe Amanda opened herself up to this and that it was her fault. Or the ones that continued to say terrible things online. So sad and tragic.
8:45 PM
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