Thanks to The Bully Project for sponsoring my writing. Visit their website to join the movement and learn more.
I remember this girl in middle school who was a year older than me. She didn’t have any friends, she seemed like a loner, she just didn’t fit in. People would laugh at her, make fun of the way she looked and dressed. I know that for at least a year she had been bullied or made to feel like an outcast. I distinctly remember watching her class’s middle school graduation (I was in the chorus), and everyone would clap for their friends when they received their diploma. When it was her turn to go up, there was hardly any applause; there were even a few snickers and chuckles from the audience.
This was over 26 years ago, but the scene is still ingrained in my memory. I just felt so sorry for her. I wonder where she is now and if she is ok.
This past Friday, I watched the movie, Bully. The film follows five kids and their families over the course of a school year, including two families who have lost children to suicide and a mom who waits to hear the fate of her 14-year old daughter who is in juvenile detention for bringing a gun on her school bus after she was fed up of being bullied. The film mainly takes place in the Sioux City Community School district and films these kids getting bullied in their school buses, classrooms, and hallways.
Anyone who has school aged children should go see this movie. Even if you don’t have kids, maybe you have a niece or nephew, GO. Bring your tissues, because you will be heart broken and angry. I just don’t understand how bullying still goes on, and teachers and school officials can’t seem to do anything about it. I don’t understand why???
Check out the official trailer for Bully here:
With two girls, one in her tweens, I am bracing myself for what may be to come. You never know what may happen in her elementary school, middle school, or high school. I just hope to god that both of them are never the bully or the subject of bullying. I guess that’s the hard part – we as parent’s can’t control what is going to happen.
Bullying can happen anywhere: school grounds, play yards, , playgrounds, school buses. Photo courtesy of Broadsheet.com
What can we do? How do we make our children more aware? How do we create empathy in our kids? I know that my husband and I will continue to instill open communication between me and our girls, get to know her friends, make sure we are as involved as we can be in her school. It amazed me that during the film, most of the parents did not have any idea the extent of the bullying. If you know what’s going on, and if its early enough, perhaps lives can be saved.
If you feel your kids are old enough, please run out and see this film with them. If anything, it will get the bullying conversation started and allow you to ask questions that you may never have thought to ask.
xo,
Pam, Triple Threat Mommy
This year, over 13 million American kids will be bullied, making it the most common form of violence young people in the U.S. experience. Bully is a film directed by Sundance- and Emmy-award winning filmmaker, Lee Hirsch. Website: www.thebullyproject.com
I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective. Find showings in your area for The Bully Project and buy tickets here.