I am 16 and in high school as a junior and cant stand going to school everyday. Everyday I am yelled at, I was jumped at school by 2 girls and what a surprise NOTHING is done, im followed and laughed at, and you always think watching someone do that, oh its no big deal, but when your being yelled at, it makes you feel alone and destroy you. I come to class and the people in my CLASSES tease me, sit at my desk and call me very mean things. Ive gone to administration, teachers and staff, and nothing is being done. This is what bugs me the most, you send your kids to a school everyday for 4 years, and you "cant" do anything about bullying? that's crap. You can do something and you can stop this in your school but there not doing anything. I want to be happy at school and I want to feel safe and I want to feel like im actually important. Schools do nothing, the parents of these bullys don't care, and my parents help as much as they can but its still so difficult. Bullying is the worst thing and I pray that this stops and for other kids, it all needs to stop.

Growing up I was always the kid that was always annoying and asked too many questions. Especially at my church, everyone hated me hated being around me. I didn't have many friends. I was 11 years old. I remember one day, two older kids from church (100 more pounds than me) through me in a room. They started kicking me and pushing me and throwing me on the ground. I remember my mom was looking for me all over the place to go home. When they got their fun out of it they let me out of the room. I could barely breath, I wanted to move churches and never go back. I felt like killing myself. We decided to move churches. I am now 18 years old and in a university studying to do something in my life. I'm so glad I stayed strong during those hard times in my life. 

my name is susan cecil and i was beening bullied at green thumb. green thumb is where i learned about plants and soil. and i was beeing bullyied at high school.

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  (Susan is a developmentally disabled adult and volunteer at KBOO community radio)

You can hear an interview with Susan conducted by KBOO's news Director here

 

Hi, I am Nathy and I am currently a freshman at Ithaca College. In my Writing for Social Justice class, we had an assignment in which we had to write a rhetorical essay based on a campaign fighting for social justice. I chose The Bully Project and I wanted to share this with everyone who is part of this wonderful campaign. This assignment gave me the chance to research an issue that is affecting our young people drastically and The Bully Project introduced me to the many ways this issue can be eliminated. 

Analyzing The Bully Project

            The Bully Project (http://www.thebullyproject.com) is a campaign working towards eliminating bullying. This campaign was developed by c-Street Campaigns and created with Nationbuilder. The award-winning film BULLY inspired the Bully Project, which following the film’s success continued on as a campaign. BULLY is a 2011 documentary directed by Lee Hirsch about students’ personal experience with bullying. Bullying is a verbal and/or physical abuse that is happening in our schools that is impacting our children significantly. The Bully Project’s goal is to make our schools and communities safer places to be in, which is helped by the website in giving young people the chance to share their stories and start their own bully project.

            The website contains the film’s trailer on the home page. I watched the film a while ago and I was moved by it because it made me realize that this issue strongly affects our students. Other than the trailer, the website’s home page contains the option to join the movement, share a story, and get tools and resources. A few stories are posted on the main page and farther down a list of funders and partners are shown. At the top of the home page one can see what their goal is, which is to reach 10 million kids by screening the film for them. Currently this campaign has reached 7,105,554 kids*. The last time I visited the website, they had reached 3 million kids*; so, in a matter of a week, the number doubled. At the top, there are different links to other pages. The pages are Tools & Resources, Film, The Project, Donate, and Shop.

This is a multimedia production because this website contains videos, graphics, images, text, and an option to share the website on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. The design of the website appeals to students and teachers. As one explores through the different pages, one gets detailed information about what the campaign does, how students can get involved, and what ways the problem can be solved. The page “Tools & Resources” contains links providing different sets of tools for each group: Students, Educators, Parents, and Advocates. This way people who fall into these categories can learn what each of them can do to stop bullying. There is also a link with Spanish tools for educators. On the page “The Project”, one can see what the movement is about and what their first goal was (reaching 1 million kids.) One can also join their local bully project, spread the word, and add their story. A way students can spread the word is by hosting screenings of BULLY in their schools. This page describes in detail how students can take that initiative.

            The Bully Project wants to spread awareness about bullying, educate people on how to stop bullying, and give bullied kids the chance to be heard. This website uses all three rhetorical appeals–logos, ethos, and pathos–in order to persuade their audience. The Bully Project uses logos by providing comprehensive tools such as the DVD tool kits for educators and many more to take the initiative in stopping bullying in schools. Once students join the campaign, they will be taken through a set of steps on how to gain skills to take action. They will find tiles that can give them exact activities and procedures to follow to spread the word. Students can start their own movements in their local communities and schools with the information this website gives them. Over 13 million kids are being bullied and these tools and resources prove that bullying can be solved in our society.

The website shows credibility because of the long list of funders and partners. Partners such as Sears, Bing, Cartoon Network, and Harvard Graduate School of Education support The Bully Project, which shows that known companies, television channels, and universities know of this campaign’s existence. Strong social campaigns such as the Human Rights Campaign and the NoVo Foundation are helping and defending this campaign too. The number of kids this campaign has reached also conveys the credibility. As of now The Bully Project has reached 23,106,650 kids*. The last time I checked, 7 million kids* were reached. The number keeps on growing everyday and this could only mean that kids, parents, and teachers trust and believe in this campaign. A great job is being done in spreading the word because this way a lot more people are aware that bullying is a strong issue affecting young people.

This campaign persuades us emotionally by posting the trailer of BULLY and the personal stories students write. The trailer of the film presents different stories, such as the story of a couple who lost their child when he was 11 years old, a young boy whose parents do not know how to deal with the issue, and many others. Different kids explain in detail what they have experienced and evidence of the abuse is shown. Throughout the film parents are reaching out to one another to spread the word. This film portrays the struggle of what it is like to not be heard and gives these people a voice. BULLY evokes sympathy and anger, a need to inspire others and fight to stop bullying, and above all the chance to understand and experience what these families have gone through.

This film opened my eyes. I realized that there are adults out there who do not see what is really going on. Often times principals believe everything is fine at their schools and teachers do not help students because they did not witness what happened. Local state officials often do not punish bullies because they often believe kids are ruthless when they are young and such cruelty is normal. The stories the students write also make one experience the same emotions when seeing the trailer of BULLY because of the unfair pain these kids experience. Both the film and the stories play an important role in persuading the audience emotionally.

The use of social media is significant on this website and in the campaign itself. Social media is important on this website because whenever one clicks a link to open a new page, the option of sharing this website on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram always appears. Each person who shares this website on any of these social networks is contributing to making this website known. Social media helps this campaign grow. Under the “Find Your Bully Project” page, one finds the states in which this campaign exists and functions. The Bully Project also reached Singapore, the Philippines, Taiwan, and Japan. When one clicks on each link, they are taken to the Facebook page of each bully project in each location. Facebook helps this movement stay alive. Anyone can go to the their state or country’s Facebook page and keep up with what the campaign will do next. Social media allows all of the different bully projects to stay connected and work together towards ending bullying by spreading the word to a larger audience.

The Bully Project’s website has strengths and weaknesses. Its strengths are easy to figure out within the website. BULLY’s fame, the number of kids that have joined, the list of funders and partners, and their success with social media make this campaign stronger. The goals and the design of the website add to giving the campaign a positive image. The fact that this campaign surpassed their goal of reaching 1 million kids adds more to their strength. Their method of teaching students how to nonviolently fight to stop bullying from continuing to happen is not only succeeding, but is also exciting. The use of badges to reward students encourages them to do more. The film also increases the growth of the movement because it is global and anyone anywhere could see this film.

Even though this campaign is powerful, there are constraints. A weakness in the website is the lack of language diversity. Spanish is only used once when providing the tools for educators. What if a bullied child’s parents are Latinos and do not know English? How will they understand the tools and resources they need in order to help their child? What if their child cannot translate what is written on the website? What if the child does not share what is going on but the parents know? How can they seek help? The same thing could happen with Chinese parents who only speak Chinese. Who will help them? The website should at least contain the languages mostly used in this country such as Spanish, Chinese, and French so those who do not know English would not be left behind. It is hard to include every single language in only one website but at least if two are incorporated, this campaign will reach a lot more people.

            A few revisions I would recommend on this website would be fixing the scatter of the different links because a lot of them repeat. On the main page the links for sharing a story, getting tools and resources, and exploring the bully shop are repeated twice. These links should be repeated once, either in the top pages or farther down the main page. Since the option of sharing the website on social media appears on every single click one makes, there should not be a separate link with spreading the word through social media. I also think the video from Katy Butler explaining how to take action with the website should be visible the second one enters the website. Having it small on the top left hand corner does not help it stand out. Both the introductory video and BULLY’s trailer should be a lot more visible because I missed both the first time I entered the website.

Overall The Bully Project is a powerful persuasive campaign that is working towards a goal that can improve the lives of our young people. Bullying is a behavior that can cause drastic damage if it is not stopped. Our young people have experienced pain to the point of committing suicide. Parents still struggle with this issue and their children who continue to experience bullying deserve to be heard. The Bully Project wants us to take the pledge, fight for what is right, and make our world a better place for our young people. 

 

***These footnotes represent the numbers displayed on the Goal's box on the home page. I visited the website daily while writing this essay and one day I saw that 7 million kids were reached and just a couple of days later, 23 million kids were reached. When I visited the website once again today, the number was back to 3 million. I just want to let you know in case you were not aware that this happened. 

Thank you so much. I now am more aware about bullying and I will do my best to spread the word and fight to stop it. 

When I was 16 and a sophomore I lettered for my second year in varsity golf at my high school and was also named MVP of the golf team. This did not sit well with football players in my sophomore class as they busted their butts on the field and didn't make varsity. But, of course, they didn't know how to play golf. When I passed them in the hallways, the football players would make snide comments to me, and the upper class men refused to let me join the Varsity Club. They too didn't know how to play golf.

On the last day of classes that year, one of the football players in my class, we'll call him Mike, was screwing around in P.E. class and cheating in the "Kick Square" game. He also had a can of Right Guard that he was spraying everywhere. Everybody told him he was "out" again and again and ought to go to the end of the line. But he refused and kept kicking the ball everywhere, though I seemed to think he was kicking it at me, or was it coincidence? Finally as everyone told him he was "out", he came over to me (Why to me?) and said "What did you say (my last name)?" I stood up to him and said with complete confidence, "You're out!" He took his can of Right Guard and hit me square on the face with a right cross. The blow sent me reeling about 25 feet sideways, but didn't knock me down. I had never been sucker punched like that before (or since) and of course, at that age, I totally lost my composure and came running at Mike full steam and we rolled around and fought for what seemed like forever. About 35 guys were watching, cheering the fact that a fight was happening (I was disappointed that nobody stepped in to help me against this muscle-bound football player). Mike actually fought like a girl, pulling my hair. He never let go of the Right Guard can. I never gave up the fight until the P.E. coach (who was also the Football coach) finally intervened and said "that's enough!" (as if a little bit of fighting in class is permissible). The game of Kick Square did not resume, so I think in that sense, I was the winner.

I could have prevented the fight (in retrospect) at the point when I realized that the Kick Square game was out of control, I could have bowed out and stood off in the background. Especially when I thought the ball was being kicked at me. But when you think about it, if the fight did not occur that day, it may have occurred another day. I guess, sometimes you have to take your stand in life and just do your best.

One Freshman guy said to me afterward, "Doug, I didn't know you knew how to fight like that!" Just what I needed, a compliment for fighting! And then someone came up to me and said that the Vice Principal wanted to see me. So I walked into the office. My golf coach's office was right there near the front of the school office. He somehow knew that a fight had happened, and he has the nerve to tell me (knowing that I'm a Christian and he isn't) "Hey, weren't you supposed to 'turn the other cheek?' " .... wow the insults just keep coming. I should have said, "Wow, coach, when did you become a theologian?" The coach had just named me as his MVP and that's the best he can say? I was so disappointed with the golf coach, that I boycotted the golf team my Junior year. But as a Senior I dropped my grudge long enough to rejoin the team and win MVP again.

Five years later (after graduating from college) I was on an American Legion basketball team and we played the town liquor store, that's where this bully (Mike) then worked as it was owned by his family. Before the game, I went over to him and held out my hand, hoping bygones could be bygones. He refused to shake it and actually spit on my hand, trying to impress his buddies next to him. This guy is one of the most class-less people I've ever met and so are his friends. Our American Legion team beat the liquor store handily.

Last year I was listening to a Christian radio station talk show. They had a special guest in the studio being interviewed by the host. They were talking about bullying and how Christian teenagers react to being bullied. They both agreed (astonishingly so for my ears) that if you are strong enough and have the courage, it's sometimes better to take on the bully and give him his own medicine, even fight him. That gave me a sense of vindication but I always will wonder if any route could have been better? What if, when the can of Right Guard hit me and sent me reeling, what if I just kept walking and went to the school office myself and ask to use the phone to call the Sheriff to file a report for assault & battery? Would it have made any difference?

About ten years after the incident, one of the former school bullies named Brad had turned his life around and had given up bullying, gotten married and was now a missionary. We saw each other at a Sunday School class, at a church I almost never attended, but did that day that Brad visited. He gave me a hug and profusely apologized for the high school days when he was a true jerk and ran with the wrong crowd, including with Mike the bully.  I was so glad to see the change in him. Then he told me something that totally shocked me. He said, "Do you know why Mike hit you that day and fought you?" I said, I didn't really know. Brad said that it was because of something that happened in Geometry class (Brad and Mike were both in my Geometry class). One day after class (probably many days actually), some of the kids stayed after class and would joke around with the teacher, and he was the most popular teacher on campus. I could hear people using every foul word that exists, over and over, especially the students. That day I went home and as a 16 year old, my mother always asked how school went today. I told her what I heard after Geometry class, all the unchallenged foul language like I had not heard before.

Unbeknownst to me, my mother called the school principle the next day and informed him and told him that was not appropriate. Bear in mind, my Dad was the School Board president at the time, so lots of teachers and staff didn't like my Dad because he would tell them to do this or that. I guess this was the principle's chance to get back at my family. He went to the Geometry teacher and told him that my mother (by name) had contacted him about the foul language. The teacher, for his part, really screwed up at this point and informed these foul-mouthed students that Doug's mother had finked on them, that Doug had finked to his mother.

All this, Brad told me ten years later. And here I thought it was because I was a golfer! Or maybe all the above. You think to yourself, "Can't a 16-year-old kid tell his mother what happened at school without being attacked for it?"

Despite it all, I consider myself a winner. I did my best with the information I had at the time, and I fought like hell and didn't get hurt. I was a gentleman then, I was a gentleman at the basketball court, and I'm still a gentleman now. God bless you all.

I was bullied since I have been in 2nd grade. I got called fat everyday. I got made fun of about my hair,my clothes and alot more things about me. I started to cut in 6th grade now I am in 9th grade and I am recovering from cutting. Being bullied is a scary thing and some advise is to tell a trusted adult. You can trust a teacher,a parent,a counselor,a doctor, a therapist,or a police officer. You may be scared to tell someone but trust me it's the best thing to do.

Bullying: this is my story

Hi my name is Luis Sebastian Villalobos, age 17, and I have been bullied for my whole life. It’s hard speaking about it because I can’t talk too much people without being judged or being accused of lying. Ever since I’ve been bullied I can’t tell anyone how I’m feeling anymore. I have no voice in what I say or do with my life. I have to live up to everyone’s expectations or I’m not accepted, but I’m different and I’m not afraid to show it. Well I try my hardest to live and try to accept the fact that I’m just a shadow of everyone, but now I beatbox and its hard to because you either have those people who encourage you to keep going or there is those who put you down constantly and make you feel like crap about your life.

            It started when I was in elementary school, I stuck out because I was one of the tallest and also I was really fat as well in my class and I don’t know how to talk to people really well since my English skills are bad, and I’m shy as well. I knew from the start that the school year was going to be hard and I was right. And every day I had to deal with being called fat, stupid, dumb, and it really hurt me. When school was over I would take the bus to daycare right in town and there was a person _____ (not going to put names of my bullies) who would take advantage of me and push around, or would make me cry or hurt me and would laugh in my face about how I wasn’t strong and I’m emotional as well. I hated it because I had no one to talk to about it and I didn’t know how to defend myself. It sucked and it just kept getting worse and worse, and about a year later it got what I thought was going to be the worst of it all and that’s when I tried to stand up for myself one day and it was the worst thing I could have done because when I did he overpowered me and gave me a wedgy, pushed me to the ground, and punched me for about what felt like 5 to 10 minutes. But that day when I got home I go outside and hide around my house, because of this incident I can’t even talk to my parents or look at them in the face. It hurts me a lot when I talk about my life story.

            A couple of years passed of the same thing every day and when I was in middle school I was now 5’10” and about 240lbs. but it got worse. I had to deal with people talking trash, getting beat up every now and then, getting made fun of. Oh I hated my middle school years from grade 6 to grade 8 I was dealing with this on a constant basis. Every night I would cry myself to sleep and I would starve myself for anywhere about 3-5days trying to lose weight so I wouldn’t have to deal with the constant fact that i couldn’t defend myself in the darkest hours. I really wish I had someone there to talk to about what was happening but I didn’t feel comfortable telling anyone what I was experiencing. Every time when it came to P.E. and when we had to get dressed for activities I would have to dress in the stalls in one of the bathrooms because I would deal with everyone making fun of me for how big I was. It got to the point where I started to cut myself on my arms, legs, stomach. I hated myself because I was one of the slowest in running, learning, I never had above 3.0 in my whole life and it sucks to see all my friends make honor roll and I was sitting there struggling to have good grades. I feel horrible every single day of my life even to present day. But in my 8^th grade year I was on YouTube and this video popped up about a person by the name of KRNFX beat boxing and I thought it was wonderful. So I started to try beat boxing. I started to like and enjoy it and everyday for 2 weeks straight I would beatbox and keep practicing it as much as I could. It was wonderful.

            Now a couple more years passed and now I am in high school and I hate it sometimes because I still have to deal with being called names, and people joking about how I’m too tall or that I don’t fit in, but now everything for me has changed. I’m on the road to becoming a professional beat boxer, going to college for music technology, & electronics. But the thought of what has happened to me in my past and what’s happening to me now in the present makes me still cry to this very day. I really wished the person I hold to my heart dearly and I love her to death Savonna Lopez, but to be all honest and truthful I would put my life before hers and I try to protect her n help her with everything I can do and what she needs I would have met her early on in life because I tell her everything and she tells me everything. We don’t keep secrets from each other. Now I’m a senior in high school getting ready to graduate and she is a junior going into her last year of school. I’ve started my own YouTube for beat boxing, also along with vine, & instagram. But even to this day I still feel alone and there is no hope out there for me. I think about it every day and it still hurts. I look forward to having this reposting, sharing it around, and I also look forward to meeting people that have been bullied as well or need help. I try to help everyone out and teach people how to beat box as well so if you are interested in beat boxing, need someone to talk to, or even have questions please feel free to contact me or message me. I welcome it.

            Thank you for your time,

            Sincerely Luis Sebastian Villalobos,

            P.S. STAND UP FOR THE SILENT

so wednesday i got in truble cause i standed up for my self and my friends so i was ask to leve school to why the bully got to stay at school they dident do nothing about it when everyone in the school seen the pic i go to usv upper sicto valley and this top the most bullying teens and the people who stand for there self are the ones geting in truble so they told me i wasent aloud to come to school yesterday that just wow right i guess thats upper for you 

It's quite a long story, like many others you might read, you see similarities of the repetitive nature of name calling that goes on in school, and the actions of students ostracizing a fellow student and making them invisible. I was that student, I was invisible, I was called names, and I was physically, sexually, and verbally abused by classmates. I was sensitive, kind, a good listener, and also compassionate. My sense of self was depleted as I was ridiculed, trash thrown on me during recess, a boy in my class attacking me on the bus by sitting on me, getting gum thrown in my hair, being called some slurs and  other names that I don't want to write for their nature of offense is too harsh. The attacks seemed like a constant barrage of hatred, and maliciousness. It started in fourth grade and continued into high school. I was silent, the bullying left me feeling worthless, helpless, and empty. I became quite adapted at hiding my emotions and also pretending everything was okay. I convinced myself somehow to survive despite the hatred and intensity of the actions directed toward me. I numbed both through starving, and striving for what became an endless pursuit of perfection. I felt control, food was control, my grades were control, things I could control, despite the world around me, that seemed to be slatting it's worst at me in every moment at least to a Sixteen year olds mind, when the world is small.  I was scared of myself, so I hid, and became lost to my identity of that compassionate, kind, good listener, thoughtful, intelligent, and sort of funny girl. After the bullying in high school, I entered college numbed both by the eating disorder I had developed, and another goal the endless pursuit of perfection both physically as well as anything outwardly, I was driven by these things. The bullying had in part, been one of the factors in causing me to latch on to these false ideas and identities in the midst of time that was turbulent. Soon, things changed, bullying after high school was minimal, and I started achieving in College. The GPA became my measure, my weight, and I built a even taller wall, as I refused to let anyone in, that might cause me harm. I went on this way for three years, but slowly my wall started crumbling as my soul craved connection and friendship. I started talking more, and opening up to my college friends. The more I talked, and listened, the more I realize I was not alone. I connected, this connection brought me to seek help for my eating disorder, and now after two rounds of intensive eating disorder treatments and counseling, somehow I have pieced together myself without the wall and barriers I once used to block out the hurt. I embraced my quirks and also my personality. I want to tell this as a story of hope,as the truth is stronger then the lies of other people and bullies. The truth is your truth, that you live by and what makes you. I choose to be an advocate for those who don't have a voice. I am now a teacher, compassionate, and my faith in Christ is my truth. I have broken that wall built to protect from bullying and now I'm free!!

My whole life i have been bullied for being different. Because I was a girl that liked boys AND girls. No one wanted to be friends with the freak. I had no one growing up. When my mother found out, all she said was its not natural, its just a phase,  you'll grow out of it. OF course, I never did. But always feeling unloved/unwanted by my peers and my own mom was hard for me. The teasing at school from elementary school through the time I graduated high school, pushed me to the brink of suicide. I still battle with depression from the years I dealt with being bullied. But I am doing what I can to raise awareness about bullying. And I hope to one day change the world through my books and my actions.