Bullying

In class we watched several videos that had to do with bullying. The first video we watched was on the case of Jamie Nabozny. Nabozny was severely bullied throughout his schooling years because he was gay. When Nabozny and his parents went to the school and informed them of what was going on, the school basically told them that boys will be boys and there was nothing that they could do to stop other children from bullying Nabozny. Eventually Nabozny attempted to commit suicide and then decided to run away and these actions made his parents realize that what was going on was not okay and something needed to be done so their child would be safe, like he should be. Jamie ended up suing the school and the teenagers who harshly bullied him at school. His was the first case of bullying that ended up winning in court.
This story was truly inspiring. I felt proud of Jamie Nabozny for having the courage to sue the school not knowing whether or not he would walk out of the courtroom winning or losing. It shows that one person can really change the entire country's rules because of what happened to him. Jamie Nabozny did not deserve to undergo what he went through and was rewarded with money for compensation. Money can't buy back Nabozny's childhood and no one should have to go through what he did.

Rachel Neblett was a 17 year old girl who seemed like she had everything going for her. She was a cheerleader, a talented gymnast and she had a lot of friends at school. One summer she started receiving threatening emails. Neblett had not told her parents of this until it became more of a serious issue. Neblett's teachers and principal were informed, once her parents found out, so that they could keep an eye out for her at school. Neblett eventually commit suicide because of her fear for her life from the anonymous e-mailer. To add to the cause, one of her best friends committed suicide six months after Neblett did because of her inability to cope with Neblett's death.

Neblett's father created a nonprofit organization, Make a Difference for Kids, to spread awareness of anti-bullying and anti-suicide across the country. Organizations like Make a Difference for Kids is a great way to get the anti bullying message out there. The more organizations like this, the less kids and teenagers will be to feel the need to bully others at and/or out of school. Bullying has shown to be an immense problem in many parts of the US and is something that may not ever actually go away, but can be helped. Many teens and even young children are feeling that suicide is the only way out of bullying but that shouldn't be so.
To see more about Rachel Neblett's organization visit: http://www.makeadifferenceforkids.org/rachael.html

I don't think that bullying is an issue at Deerfield High School. No one I know is personally bullied and I know that I don't personally bully anyone. I feel fortunate that bullying is not a big problem here because teenagers should feel safe in the places they are. If bullying becomes a problem there is always the deans office to settle any disputes between teens. Bullying can be minimized all around the country and if students at a high school, like DHS, are activists on non bullying, it may help with bullying problems at other schools.

yours truly,
Amy