We recently ran an opinion piece about bullying – more importantly the changing dynamics of bullying. We mentioned there was a time when a person could escape the bullies in their own home, but this was no longer the case as nasty people can now reach their target of abuse anywhere through social media.
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It is a scenario that leaves many people feeling helpless and has sadly had devastating consequences brought to the public’s attention, most recently with the suicide of 14-year-old Amy “Dolly” Everett and with 47-year-old celebrity Charlotte Dawson who died in 2014.
First and foremost their deaths emphasise that bullying can have tragic repercussions at any age. They also highlight the need to raise awareness among people of all ages about how their behaviour can hurt others, sometimes to a tragic level, and the steps they can take to cope with bullying actions.
Sadly bullying seems almost ingrained within our society –bringing an end to it will be a long process of re-education and commitment from all people to stop it where ever and when ever it occurs. The likelihood of everyone taking action to stop bullying is questionable as many fear becoming the new target of this poor behaviour.
There are also many who have nasty or denigrating behaviour ingrained in their personality – their ability to see the error of their ways is unlikely. Be mindful bullying is not something that is confined to the playground it runs through all ages and locations within our society – in the workplace, on the sports field and in the home.
While we should never give up on the campaign to raise awareness about this blight on society, perhaps our greatest focus should be on educating people to cope with bullies. We need to teach our children, remind our co-workers and open up the lines of communication with our friends about possible solutions. A few simple words could prove invaluable –report and ignore.
Report bullying behaviour to someone – parents, management, social media administrators, police. Then ignore anyone who behaves in a bullying way – don't respond to their taunts whether they are written or spoken. And when we see those trolls who tend to make derogatory comments on social media we should not respond - the interaction, both good or bad - prompts them to continue their abuse. Clearly these reactions won’t solve all problems but they are certainly a good place to start.
