Why does American society, even after so many tragedies, tolerate bullies in schools?

Question

The Today Show this morning had a segment about a beautiful young girl in middle school who was driven the point of considering suicide. Surely, Hell does not have a place hot enough for anyone who does anything so dispicable.

Andrea, you are right on target. When - and IF - the rest of the nation catches up with Simi Valley, it will be a better day. I am disturbed by the tone of some other answers to this question. They seem to be blaming the girl for her own persecution. Nothing could be further from the truth. The child, although beautiful, is disabled because of epilepsy. Her persecution began after she suffered an epileptic attack at school. Groups were formed whose members wore wrist bands denouncing her. How anyone can try to justify all of this in any way is appalling to me.

Answer 1

Well, for us here in Simi Valley, bullying is not tolerated. At all
They give workshops for parents so they can recognize if their child is being bullied, or is bullying others. They also have workshops on how to protect your child from Internet bullying, like on my space and such.
Even if you talk about bullying, it's an automatic five day suspension. For your first of fence of bullying you get five days suspension, for your second....you get expelled. Our school district has very tough policies, as they should.
More should be done nation wide though.

Answer 2

1) Parents don't pay attention to what their kids are doing

2) Teachers ignore problems many times rather than confront the issues (my niece has that where she goes)

3) Parents don't teach their children to respect other people

4) Peer pressure where kids think they have to group together for fear they will also be ostracized

Most of the problems start at home because many parents are not doing their jobs and don't monitor what their kids are doing, who they are with or where they are going. They both work to buy all the luxuries they want and their kids want so mom isn't at home to stabilize and direct kids in the right direction.

The teachers aren't there to rear the kids but they should be taking a stand and even teaching against problems like this and a note should be sent to the parents letting them know what the problems are and ask them to talk with their kids. Unfortunately most parents aren't involved with the schools like they used to be and they don't back the teachers who are trying to solve some of these problems when the parents are there.

(after all, "their" child would 'never' do anything wrong *adjusts the kids angel wings that got caught in their horns and tail*).

Answer 3

Although I agree that a bully should have reserved from him/her a special section in hell; the problem lies more in another tragic side of the American society. We have produced a generation that believes they are entitled to have what they want.

In every aspect of life; you, I or anyone else will encounter bullies. They exist in school, in the after school activities, the office and even the family. Instead of instructing this girl that her life will be what she wants, let instruct her that her life will be what SHE makes of it. Lets give here the tools in life she needs and not cry with her when she contemplates suicide. I will bet the bully picks on those that are weak and not the others who have shown some the ability to stand up for themselves.

Answer 4

You are right. Bullies have been a problem in schools for generations. I think parents and teachers should be held more accountable for the learning environments that our schools provide. That includes the bullies ability to hurt and intimidate others.

That's the best long term solution.

Meantime, I have a useful observation for you. When confronting a bully, you don't have to win to make him stop hurting and intimidating you. You only have to hurt him. It won't matter if he hurts you more. Bullies are big babies, they don't like to be hurt. So all you have to do is to "get in a really good ONE", you'll probably be beaten after that, but at the next opportunity and the ones to follow, he will think twice about whether he wants to go after you again or not.

Answer 5

I don't think American sociey tolerates bullies, but there has to be a better way to deal with this problem. I don't know. Bullies have been around since the beginning of time. Look at other countries - in Japan many kids commit suicide because of this.

Answer 6

>"mom and dad of bullies and Mr. and Mrs. Popular intentionally *desire* their baby to be equipped to run roughshod and dominate over the youngsters who're bullied, persecuted, or marginalized." Agreed. Moreover, society teaches us that the one solution to create is to damage first. And, as such, bullies are taught they're simply cleansing the "losers" (IE "folks who cannot get whatever performed") out of how you can make means for individuals who can. People get into cliques for the phantasm that they're extra effective that means IE nerds can handiest do educational matters correct, jocks can handiest do sporting activities correct, and so forth....whilst surely having a huge variety of pursuits and NOT handiest those you're clearly proficient at is how you can particularly be trained and be so much effective. And, sure, alas, bullies more commonly end up leaders. What is overlooked is that they end up leaders of CORRUPT organizations IE Enron and such...and are certainly not real completely happy, handiest striving for higher and larger. We have to begin instructing that if handiest the "elite" might talk, then the sector could be tremendously quiet and uninteresting.

Answer 7

Well take a look at what our society considers to be worth mentoring. A majority of our society's members are considered to be Christian or of Judeo Christian values. The values themselves generally condone a one upmanship within life, a class of individuals who are allowed to judge without being judged.

Jesus is the guy most Christians say they worship and yet this man was quite emotionally and spiritually mean and abusive in his verbal communication. He said things to the pharasees like "Ye are of your fathers the devil", attempting to show that their mentors were faulty and that they were doing the same as their mentors. But Jesus did not explain himself very well. At times he did not have all that much tact!

During some episodes about some types of sin he reflected and affirmed his profession in some eternal damnation because of those sins.

So if you see kids who have been taught that this guy is their mentor, the "Be like Jesus" teachers say so, then what do you expect from these children? Who of them would not want that ultimate respect they are promised? But which of them is practiced enough to criticize constructively and what do they hear in society from this disease? Namecalling and bullying. Perhaps Jesus was a bigger bully than we realized?

And then there is the girl threatenning to commit suicide! Well lets look at this one too?! Jesus got crucified and many say that Jesus was God! They say that God knows everything! Therefore.....now follow me here... therefore....Jesus knew exactly how to provoke others to crucify him......and did it on purpose, thereby making his crucifixion ...... You got it! SUICIDE!

So unless we can take that law of love he authored and change it into, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you, AS IF YOU WERE THEM"!, we have a dysfunctional law of love to live by. True friendship requires you be interested in how the other person is feeling and thinking and what your actions will do to them and you! Forgiveness/ Sharing of thoughts and feelings.

I am a Forgive Affirmed Spirit. Please feel free to check out my profile and my Questions an Answers and discern my thoughts ...Thankyou

Answer 8

Many parents are in denial and do not want to believe that their "angels" would bully anyone. To make matters worse, there are a lot of very violent children, teenagers. They sometimes menace the teachers just as much as they menace other students. Then, many of these parents themselves are adult bullies who will go to the school and fight the teachers for telling them the truth. If you want to understand the children, just look at the behavior of the parents.

Answer 9

Isn't there also a tendency to tolerate bullies at work, entertainment, sport and politics as well? Don't "we" worship those business and political people who break a few eggs to get the job done, even when the eggs are individuals who are warning of illegal financial reporting, unethical product marketing, dangerous long term consequences of a popular piece of legislation?

Answer 10

not justifying the bully but you can't control all aspects of a persons behavior. you also can't have children growing up in a completely sheltered environment. they will get picked on at some time, to some degree by somebody. obviously the part you saw was takey to an unnecessary extreme.