Intimidating others is bullying. Is there a difference between teasing and bullying or intimidation? This may be a part of life and never go away. Intimidation and bullying has existed since the beginning of time. And, there are several documentaries on bullying that have offered no solution to the problem. At most, they offer a painful look at what children already see and feel when bullied. It demonstrates to young people how invisible their lives can be to adults, and just how unsupportive and inattentive adults can be.
Teasing has two types – playful and hurtful. But, when teasing becomes hurtful and unwelcome it becomes bullying or emotional abuse. Above all, bullying is a person or group that repeatedly harms someone who is thought to be weaker. It can be direct or indirect. Bullying is characterized as hitting, name-calling, or taunting and can happen to both children and adults.
Avoiding The Bully’s Intimidating Taunts
• Tell an adult. This is not tattling.
• Don’t walk alone. Keep friends near.
• Avoid the place where bullying happens. Stay away from unsupervised areas.
• Don’t be emotional. Show the bully you are not bothered.
• Walk or run away. Ignore the bully.
Fighting Back
• Respond to the bully firmly and act confident. Then, tell the bully to leave.
• Make a joke out of a bully’s comment. In a like manner, laugh at yourself.
• Equally important, remember that the bully is wrong.
• Report the actions to an adult.
Adults can help the bullied. First, let the person being bullyed come up with ideas. Ask questions like: “What do you think you can say next time? What do you think might work?” Then, ask what they think will happen if that action is taken? Last, provide possible scenarios for them to think about. Problems must work themselves out. And, people need to focus on how to handle conflicts through a means of support and resources both in and out of school. Furthermore, we must bully-proof our children.
