bullying alive and well in 2010

A few months ago Enda blogged about bullying here. We tend to just ignore the issue of bullying or write it off just because it doesn’t happen to us or to our friends. In some cases though, you only hear about it when it’s too late…

I am of course referring to the Phoebe Prince case. For those who aren’t aware of it, here’s a brief summary;

The 15-year-old, originally from Co Clare, took her own life in January after allegedly enduring weeks of bullying on the internet, through text messages and at South Hadley High School in Massachusetts.

Nine teenagers are facing criminal charges ranging from statutory rape and criminal harassment to stalking and violation of civil rights.

Read more here

It shows you that (a) bullying is still alive and well (b) it can go undetected or swiped aside until it’s too late.

This diagram below shows the cycle of bullying… don’t be one of the people who see it & ignore it otherwise you risk living with guilt and regret, just like those who undoubtedly knew about Phoebe’s bullying.

The person you see being bullied today, could be gone tomorrow and remember that the next time you see it happening, particularly if the victim is vulnerable or mentally unstable. You can sense when people take things to heart and when they brush them aside. There are different levels and styles of bullying.

Talk, defend, support… do something and who knows, you might save someone’s life.