When
I read the news story about Marshall Brooks, the 17 year old student in
Hudson who was severely beaten in front of approximately 50 students,
who were busy recording the fight and posting it to Youtube, I was
disgusted but not shocked. I actually wished, however, to be shocked by something of such an awful nature. I figure that if I
could be shocked then maybe others would be too, thus leading to
preventative action finally being implemented in our schools.... No such
luck though.
Recently at the library, I came across the book, Playground,
written by 50 Cent. It is the story of a bully, and it is based on
experiences from his own adolescence. The first few chapters are vivid
and disturbing; they describe the in-depth details of a fight that took
place:
I
knew what I had to do, and I couldn't wait to do it. Not to get it
over with, but to savor every last second of it. My sweet revenge...
After lunch the playground was more crowded than usual, and that suited
my purposes fine. "Hey, Maurice!" I called out when I saw him sitting
on the bench by the monkey bars. He was alone... When I said his name,
Maurice looked up at me with a funny expression, almost like he knew
what was about to happen. But I play fair, so I gave him a chance to
defend himself. "Hey, Maurice, I think it's time you learned what
happens when you talk s--- about me,... There's only one way I can think
of to keep your mouth shut, and that's to shut it myself." Maurice
rose from the bench, and now his expression was definitely frightened.
He put down his book and took a few steps toward me, and that's when I
gave it to him. I reached into my pocked and BAM! I whacked Maurice
right across that self-satisfied grin of his, and I pounded those
batteries into his teeth over and over until I felt something come
loose... I'd barely even gotten started when Maurice collapsed onto the
asphalt with both hands clasped over his mouth, and how the blood flew
everywhere until it seemed to be coming out of his ears... When I pulled
my hand away from his face, I suddenly became aware of how the whole
scene had gone completely silent all around us: how all of those kids
just stood there staring at me like I was finally something. I'd be
lying if I said that didn't feel pretty damn good.
This
is a scene that 50 Cent is describing based on when he was in high
school... in the 80's?? Violence in schools has been going on for
years. But for some reason, the school boards have not been interested
in addressing this issue. Why work on teaching children about morals
and values when instead, we can teach them about... digital citizenship???
Yes... You read that correctly: DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP! The main
difference between the incident that 50 Cent was describing and the
incident that occurred in Hudson is the use of technology. The school
board does not seem to have a problem with the violent beating that
occurred... Instead, what they have a problem with is that students were
recording it and posting it online. Well, if there's one positive
thing about technology, its that things cannot easily be hidden anymore!
Of course, this type of public exposure does have a major negative consequence: a desensitization to violence. I remember when the Columbine shooting occurred in 1999. I was in my final year of high school and I was glued to CNN and every other news station. Shock and panic and grief struck North America. Questions were being thrown all over the place: what is happening to our youth? The media was following that story for weeks. Nobody could talk about anything else. Now let me ask you a question: did you know that there was a school shooting in Ohio in February 2012 where five students were injured? I bet the answer is no! Look at how desensitized our society has become! Just 13 years ago, we were shocked by this type of story. Over time, it has become 'normalized'... and acceptable???
By the way, in case you were wondering, the school board has agreed to bring someone into the school to discuss what the role of a bystander should be. I want to point out that this is BRILLIANT... particularly since most people can recite the roles and characteristics of the bully, the victim and the bystander. What they actually need help with is the ACTION part, especially since studies indicate that people in groups are less likely to take individual action, since they believe that someone else will do it. For me, this is besides the point. Is it really necessary for us to live in a reactionary society? Must we always be in crisis?
I have a much better question: what about PREVENTION??? WHO IS TAKING CARE OF OUR CHILDREN? According to the article in the Montreal Gazette, the police are saying it's not their responsibility; they are passing it on to the schools. The schools are saying that they don't want to deal with it, so they are passing it on to community organizations, in a very limited manner.... Do you know that I helped design an anti-bullying social skills program that the schools have completely shut out? Their response: we already have these programs.... Well where are they??????
Oh yeah! Let's not forget the government's role in all this... In a previous post, I explained that the government's anti-bullying plan consisted in hoping that people would turn into model citizens. Lovely. So we are living in a society where everyone is blaming the dog and our children are being brutally attacked. AGAIN... WHO IS HELPING OUR CHILDREN?????
When we really begin to understand the issue of bullying, there are some trends that are apparent. One of the most striking is this: children who are bullies and children who are victims both feel like they are not a part of the group. They could be having difficulties fitting in at home, at school, with their peers... They feel alone. My idea is this: work to make bonds with children and they will not feel the need to bully others. Work to make bonds with children and they will have the confidence to stand up for themselves. Let a child trust and not be let down; they will understand what being trustworthy means and exhibit noble, honest and positive behaviors. Let's make connections with our children, let them be heard and stop letting them fall through the cracks! Living in Montreal, we know the harm that potholes and broken sidewalks cause (holes in tires and twisted ankles), which transforms into broken hearts and physical harm for our children.
Today, I challenge you to stand up for our children: do not allow your child's school to brush aside or make excuses for its violence and bullying problems. Hold your principals and school board representatives accountable. Fight for your child's right to be safe at school! Because if you don't stand up for your child, then who will?
http://www.montrealgazette.com/Hudson+student+severe+beating+recorded+YouTube/6469451/story.html
http://www.montrealgazette.com/school+beating+YouTube/6482127/story.html
http://www.montrealgazette.com/life/Watching+Bully+Reformed+bully+onetime+victim+screen+film+together/6473974/story.html
Please feel free to contact me if you require any further information about any of topics covered in this blog at: www.brightsidelearning.com .
Of course, this type of public exposure does have a major negative consequence: a desensitization to violence. I remember when the Columbine shooting occurred in 1999. I was in my final year of high school and I was glued to CNN and every other news station. Shock and panic and grief struck North America. Questions were being thrown all over the place: what is happening to our youth? The media was following that story for weeks. Nobody could talk about anything else. Now let me ask you a question: did you know that there was a school shooting in Ohio in February 2012 where five students were injured? I bet the answer is no! Look at how desensitized our society has become! Just 13 years ago, we were shocked by this type of story. Over time, it has become 'normalized'... and acceptable???
By the way, in case you were wondering, the school board has agreed to bring someone into the school to discuss what the role of a bystander should be. I want to point out that this is BRILLIANT... particularly since most people can recite the roles and characteristics of the bully, the victim and the bystander. What they actually need help with is the ACTION part, especially since studies indicate that people in groups are less likely to take individual action, since they believe that someone else will do it. For me, this is besides the point. Is it really necessary for us to live in a reactionary society? Must we always be in crisis?
I have a much better question: what about PREVENTION??? WHO IS TAKING CARE OF OUR CHILDREN? According to the article in the Montreal Gazette, the police are saying it's not their responsibility; they are passing it on to the schools. The schools are saying that they don't want to deal with it, so they are passing it on to community organizations, in a very limited manner.... Do you know that I helped design an anti-bullying social skills program that the schools have completely shut out? Their response: we already have these programs.... Well where are they??????
Oh yeah! Let's not forget the government's role in all this... In a previous post, I explained that the government's anti-bullying plan consisted in hoping that people would turn into model citizens. Lovely. So we are living in a society where everyone is blaming the dog and our children are being brutally attacked. AGAIN... WHO IS HELPING OUR CHILDREN?????
When we really begin to understand the issue of bullying, there are some trends that are apparent. One of the most striking is this: children who are bullies and children who are victims both feel like they are not a part of the group. They could be having difficulties fitting in at home, at school, with their peers... They feel alone. My idea is this: work to make bonds with children and they will not feel the need to bully others. Work to make bonds with children and they will have the confidence to stand up for themselves. Let a child trust and not be let down; they will understand what being trustworthy means and exhibit noble, honest and positive behaviors. Let's make connections with our children, let them be heard and stop letting them fall through the cracks! Living in Montreal, we know the harm that potholes and broken sidewalks cause (holes in tires and twisted ankles), which transforms into broken hearts and physical harm for our children.
Today, I challenge you to stand up for our children: do not allow your child's school to brush aside or make excuses for its violence and bullying problems. Hold your principals and school board representatives accountable. Fight for your child's right to be safe at school! Because if you don't stand up for your child, then who will?
http://www.montrealgazette.com/Hudson+student+severe+beating+recorded+YouTube/6469451/story.html
http://www.montrealgazette.com/school+beating+YouTube/6482127/story.html
http://www.montrealgazette.com/life/Watching+Bully+Reformed+bully+onetime+victim+screen+film+together/6473974/story.html
Please feel free to contact me if you require any further information about any of topics covered in this blog at: www.brightsidelearning.com .
No comments:
Post a Comment