Bullying Film Bullying Is a Horrible Problem

Bullying Film

Bullying

Bullying is a horrible problem in schools today, and it can happen to anyone. There are no racial or gender lines that stop bullying, and even kids who seem like they would not be victims can end up being bullied. Sometimes, it does not seem as though there is any reason to bully someone, other than he or she has become the chosen target. All it takes is for the popular kids to find another child a little bit different for some reason, and that child will be bullied. That is a large part of what Hirsch (2012) is trying to show in his documentary -- that bullying is pervasive and seriously problematic, and that it does not always make sense in that there is no obvious reason why a person would be bullied. Even for children who look or act different from their peers, bullying is never acceptable.

Unfortunately, one of the largest problems with bullying is that there is very little being done about it. Educators and parents often look the other way, especially when the bully is a popular kid. Parents insist that their child would never do something like that, and even when they are confronted with direct evidence they look for excuses. Of course, this is not the case with every parent whose child is a bully. Some are genuinely horrified that their children would act that way and mistreat other people. However, many bullies come from homes where that behavior is considered normal and acceptable. They are not taught to treat others with respect, so they bully and tease other children.

Some of the victims of this bullying have gone so far as to commit suicide, because they see no other way to make the pain stop. Hirsch (2012) addresses this in the documentary. He follows five children who are bullied, two of which ultimately take their own lives, in an effort to understand the bullying culture and why it continues to happy in schools, online, on playgrounds, and in other areas of a child's life. Because it appears to be so pervasive throughout the formative years, one is left to wonder how it affects people as they get older. Do the bullies stop bullying, and do the victims "get over it," or is it something that stays with a person throughout his or her entire lifetime?

That is a hard question to answer. Hirsch (2012) only studied a very small group of children for his documentary, so it is not known how they will fare when they grow up. It is also not known how a much larger group may evolve when it comes to bullying or being bullied. Still, there are indications that some bullies never change, and that some people become bullies in older age. The bullying that children undergo in school and other areas of life is not the only issue society has with this. Bullying of adults is also becoming a concern. In workplaces and online, there are adult bullies who make every effort to make other people feel bad about their lives. It can be difficult for some people to ignore this or just let it "roll off their back," and can cause a person to change jobs, shut down social media, and take other measures to stay away from people who treat them badly.