Speak Out Against Bullying

What is bullying? Bullying is the act of repeated aggressive behavior enforcing an individuals authority over another person creating an imbalance of power. There is emotional, physical or verbal, or cyber bullying. Some people are calling this time a "bullying epidemic" but is this reality or merely an overexaggeration caused by the media?

A school in Penticton, British Columbia, holds the truth of this matter. Princess Margaret has about 700 students, mostly caucasian, with some minorities mostly being aboriginal or East Indian. Princess Margaret Secondary has a "friendly, spirited atmosphere," says one student, who will remain nameless, "Bullying isn't' a major issue in our school. We all seem to respect each other." According to the media bullying has become such a huge problem now because of the use of Internet. Rachel Knoll, a grade twelve student tells us, "The other high school in Penticton, Penticton High School has way more bullying than our school. We're all family here."

Princess Margaret may just an exception to the stereotypical epidemic of bullying. We hear in the media about the unfortunate events of students committing suicide because of bullying which is not to be taken lightly, but could the media be exposing kids to the idea of suicide when being bullied?

Princess Margaret may not be the worst for bullying, but a few students admitted that some verbal bullying does take place. The question is if bullying will continue to get worse or if it has always been the same, maybe more emphasized by the media now. Bullying is wrong and will not be accepted, speak out against bullying.