Way back when I was actually posting regularly, I made mention of running a series of special posts regarding the act of bullying and it’s ramifications. Well, I’m pleased to announce our very first guest blogger:
Aisha G. from Hartlyn Kids
She shares her thoughts about bullying with us right below – please show her some support, and let’s get this very important dialogue started again.
With all the news and emphasis on bullying and the state of bullying these days, I started to think to myself, as a new parent… would I prefer if my child were the victim of bullying or the bully? I mean – that is what I have SERIOUSLY thought about.
At first I thought – I would definitely would choose the victim because I would not want my child to be the person inflicting pain or harm (physical or emotional) to another person. I also thought, bullies could end up being ARRESTED for their bad behavior, so yes – I would take the victim any day. I would prefer the timid child versus the one who is mean and we would deal with the victim status.
Then, I thought more and more. Some of these victims are DYING and too often, by their own hands. Cyberbulling has taken bullying to the next level and made bullying go viral. A mean comment in front of five people would be considered a minor event in the world of Facebook and YouTube videos that publicly ridicule children. So I changed my mind and figured instead…. I think I would rather have my child be the bully. While they are inflicting pain, they are usually not considering taking their own lives and suicide is something I just could not deal with.
So my final final decision about whether if I had to choose, would I prefer that my child be a bully or the victim of a bullying situation…. NEITHER.
Neither MUST exist and there does not need to be a choice. Teaching tolerance, patience, love at an early age can go a long way. Teaching children about the repercussions of their mean behavior to children can go a long way. Teaching children self-love and the need to ignore others who are insensitive to them can go a long way. And we have to make the effort. We have to speak about against bullying and BULLY BULLYING.
Why? I don’t want my daughter asking herself the question about which she would prefer HER child to be – because I want the problem eradicated. Bullying is not natural, not expected and should not be tolerated.
Aisha Greene is a mother, wife, lawyer, entrepreneur, Brooklynite. Her passions are literacy and cultural awareness. She has directed those passions into a small business, Hartlyn Kids (www.HartlynKids.com), a multicultural children’s book company that encourages children to travel the globe through reading. You can also enjoy her ramblings about ways to expose children to other cultures in cost effective ways on her blog located at www.HartlynKids.blogspot.com
I vote for NEITHER as well. I was actually bullied during middle school and sometimes think back to that time in my life and wondered why I allowed the other kids to treat me that way. However, I wonder what would have happened if it was now with the influence of social media. For us to eradicate bullying we will have to be proactive whether or not it is our child.