It's a new year, but bullying is still a huge problem in my school. Yesterday, I heard about a student who was singled out because he is gay. Another form of bullying is intimidating or singling out an individual or group due to racial, ethnic, religious, sexual orientation, or other differences.
To give you an example of what could happen when someone is bullied this way, let's take look in the Acception: Prevention and Solutions Health Education Curriculum.
Alex’s family recently moved into a very conservative school district
with little diversity. He is the only openly gay student in his school and feels like an outsider because of
his sexual orientation. One day he is walking down the school hallway when a couple of bullies call
him a “fag” and yell at him to “stop acting like a girl” as many of the students laugh. This harassment
begins to happen more frequently, and Alex finds himself being singled out because of his sexual
identity on a regular basis. How would you speak up to these bullies? A couple of ways you can speak up to the bullies may be:
1) Confront the bullies and ask them, “Why are you doing this?” Try to find out why they are
prejudiced against gays, and explain to them that bullying a student because you don’t
understand or agree with his or her sexuality isn’t cool.
2) Offer to walk down the school hall with Alex in between classes and get some of your friendsto join you. There is strength in numbers! If the bullies keep harassing Alex, tell them they are rude
and to “Stop It!"
Remember, there is strength in numbers! If you find yourself being harassed or singled out in this way, make sure to tell someone, such as a friend, a teacher, or your parents. No one should have to be bullied simply for who they are!
For more
information on Acception’s solution-based approach to bullying prevention in the classroom, visit www.Acception.info
