I’m sure most people would say the answer is “yes” to the question asked in the title of this article. The sad truth is not just most people, but most of those in authority who we count upon to turn to when we’re in trouble fail to act when it comes to standing up to bullies. Well, there’s both good news and bad news about this problem.
The bad news is in the past weeks several articles published about bullying reported that when the time came to take a stand against a gang of bullies, authorities did not just turn their heads the other way so as to not having to assess the crime and intervene, they chose to blame the victim. In this case those authorities were a school system and the police department. Impossible, you say? Well, it’s not and in more cases than we’d like to acknowledge it’s actually just the way these sad situations conclude.
After teachers failed to intervene when a Pennsylvania high school sophomore with learning disabilities was being bullied he took matters into his own hands and recorded one of the terrorizing incidents just to prove he wasn’t lying about his torment. The boy’s mother took the recording to the school principal who contacted police, but instead of disciplining the attackers, they threatened the boy with felony wiretapping charges because the recording was made, they claimed, in a location where there is an expectation of privacy.
Eventually the victim’s charges were reduced to disorderly conduct by authorities and he was convicted by a district judge, even after testifying that he was unaware the law required him to obtain the bullies permission to record them. Thankfully, the District Attorney announced they planned to drop the charges. Local school officials maintained that they take allegations of bullying “seriously”. Seriously????
The good news is that there are organizations out there that victims can contact for help. The best known are www.stopbullying.gov, Hate The Hate and The Equality Project. There are also individuals who get involved. One such individual is New York City rock musician, performance artist and bully battler Danny Blu, who uses his art to promote a message of inclusion and acceptance. He also offers the kind of help and guidance that he wished someone had offered him while growing up and still in high school.
Often referred to as “The Rebel with a Compassionate Cause”, Blu is currently working on an anti-bullying film documentary titled “Road to Change” while out on his 2014 North American Sanctuary tour to promote his latest album, “saint”. He recently hosted an evening at a local nightclub where he appeared during the performance with “hate” words scrawled over his almost naked body. Hot Indie News contacted him and he was asked to comment on this issue.
“I cannot speak to the ‘breaking of laws’ in order to record the bullying that was going on” Danny Blu admitted, “as I am not versed in the state laws of Pennsylvania or how they enforce them in the school system. What I can speak to, however, is how proud I am of this student for taking matters into his own hands. It’s exhilarating to see someone not shying away from the issue, but really doing something about it. Sometimes you have to bend the rules in order to make positive change.”
“In my recent anti-bullying demonstration at Ella Lounge in NYC, I was stopped mid-performance and told that I could not continue my performance. I had stripped off my clothing for a stripped down performance, and written all of the hateful and nasty things that have been said about me in the past all over my body. The venue wouldn’t have it. But sometimes you have to bend the rules in order to get people talking about the issues at hand.”
“To further my anti-bully efforts, we will be going on tour in June and during that tour will be visiting schools, community centers, groups, houses, individuals, etc. We’ll be filming a documentary of all of these meetings and sharing stories in order to affect change.”
What would you do? Would you take a stand, or just look the other way and do nothing? Contact us with your thoughts on what can and should be done in regard to this epidemic of teenage and cyber bullying. If you’re interested in helping out, then contact the above mentioned organizations, or you can go to Danny’s web site (www.thefactoryblu.com) to find out how you too can join in the fight and take a stand against bullies. Together we can make a difference.
