Every seven minutes an incident of bullying occurs somewhere in the world.
Bullying can cause children to miss school due to fear of being harassed and can even lead to suicides. It can also cause low self-esteem in our youth and is a form of both physical and verbal violence. Even a person’s ability to learn is affected by it.
Although October was anti-bullying month, advocating for the prevention of bullying shouldn’t stop there.
Even as youth in the Long Beach school district held rallies and campaigns to raise awareness and kids are pledging to stop bullying when they see it, it will take more than a month to end bullying. It takes a whole community working together to prevent abuse and bullying and many individuals and community leaders have decided to take a proactive stance against it.
While bullying is a huge problem facing youth in Long Beach, many individuals have taken the matter into their own hands.
Just recently, for example, Council member James Johnson and Vice-Mayor developed a similar policy to protect youths in parks and recreation programs.
Voicewaves has also interviewed a student, a community organizer, and an involved parent about what they have done to prevent bullying.
Marty Sopheap from Jordan High School explains the way he as a youth advocates for anti-bullying campaigns and speaks up for fellow peers.
Community organizer, Chris Covington tells us how he works with schools to handle bullying and educates others on the effects of it.
Lee White, assistant at the Parent Teacher Involvement Center at Cabrillo High School explains what they do to prevent bullying.
Because last month promoted bullying awareness in Long Beach, members of the community, school, and youth have been promoting respect for cultural and individual differences and self-esteem development, and giving students the tools to gain effective communication and conflict resolution skills.
The work against bullying needs to continue on because we as a community are responsible for helping the next generation thrive in a society where people learn to watch what they say and be more aware, considerate, and respectful of other people’s opinions and feelings.
