Bullying in Society
By Erik Berland
The issue I chose to bring into the light is bullying. As someone who has had to deal his share of bullies in the past, I want to raise awareness of this issue because it has been occurring for many years. Bullying will continue to exist unless we make a stand to change the world and make it a better place. Unless we shine light on this issue on bring into the world for people to see, it will remain in the dark and continue to cause problems for people all over the world. Most often, people associate bullying to be found in schools where one student picks on another. While it is true that bullying does frequently occur in schools, it also occurs in many other places. It really does not matter what type of social situation you are in, bullies can exist anytime there is a social interaction between two or more people.
If we want to stop bullying, we need to hit the problem at its source and figure out why some people feel the need to hurt and put down others in order for them to feel happy. There are many reasons and explanations for why some people choose to bully others. These reasons can range from someone having an unstable life at home, to someone not being disciplined properly, to someone not knowing how to accept new people into their “society”, to someone who is looking for attention. One other potential cause for bullies is that some people are simply unaware that their actions are hurting others or causing them discomfort.
After we figure out why people are bullying each other, we need to see if we can change society or the people in it to be more caring and accepting each other as equals rather than saying someone is better than someone else. Of course this goal is fundamentally flawed because human nature dictates that humans will always strive for control and power and someone somewhere will always think they are better then someone else in some other location. If the human race would learn to be less controlling and greedy and started focusing on the issues that are really important rather than fighting and killing each other over petty issues, the world would be a much better place to live.
When you break it down, there are two main forms of bullying; physical bullying and mental bullying. Physical bullying implements using physical force and intimidation to force people to either respect you and do things for you, or make people fear you. Often times, physical bullies may look strong and powerful, but on the inside they are just as scared and frightened as they make their victims feel. The bullies have to put on a façade in order get through their day and resort to hurting others to validate themselves. Mental bullies use a series of mind games and hurtful comments to make others feel miserable and think less of themselves. Mental bullying can lead to serious psychological issues in people. If someone is bullied heavily in school, they may lack self confidence and not be able to as successful in life because they do not know how to stand up for themselves.
Bullying someone is never an okay thing to do; no matter what reason or justification a person can think of for doing it. One person should not have to pick on someone else in order to feel good about themselves. If someone is that upset about the way something is progressing they should talk to someone and get help rather than just use force to solve every situation. Often times, problems and difficulties can be overcome by simply sitting down and discussing the matter. People can negotiate a way to solve the situation so that everyone can be satisfied. Many people are unable to realize this however, so bullying will continue for many generations to come until people can learn to cooperate with each other. People are working hard to try and reduce/prevent the amount of bullying that goes on in society. This is going well, but there are still many things that can be done to help prevent bullying. If my experience has shown me anything it is that problems often just do not go away and get better on their own. We have to have motivation and the initiative to take a stand and make a point in order to cause anything to change and improve.
There are steps that can be taken to help prevent bullying and fix issues that already exist. The most important thing to do is tell a parent or guardian right away if bullying problems occur. Children should not be forced to figure out these difficult and challenging issues all on their own. If you are dealing with an adult situation, sit down with the bully and have a talk with them. Chances are they did not realize they were hurting someone and they would never know to change if someone did not bring the issue to them. We can also work together to raise awareness about bullying and that it is still a big issue even in today’s world. If more people know about a problem, more people will be motivated to make a change. The chance that something will change to make the situation better will increase dramatically. It is hard for one person to accomplish a large goal. A single piece of straw can be broken easily, but if you put several pieces together and weave them, you make something that is much more solid and powerful. If people join together towards a common cause and goal things will change and life will improve for everyone. There are many options available for people in order to make a difference and cause a change in the way things are going. In an ideal world no one would have to suffer and struggle through their school years because other children were bullying them. Change can and will happen; we just need to get the first spark to ignite so the fire can start and eventually blaze into an inferno that will cover everyone in new ideals and values about treating each other with kindness, respect, and humility.
