WORLD REPORT EDITION Cover Story
The Bully Battle:  You Can Make a Difference!  Empathy is the Key

Christian champ, 10, a fifth-grader in Prescott, Arizona, got his first taste of bullying in kindergarten when a second-grader pushed him off a swing. Since then—Christian has learned how to deal with bullies—people who tease, hurt or threaten others. In fourth grade, when a bully cursed at him, tried to hit him and started swinging a shoe, Christian followed his father’s advice. "First I ignored the bully," he explains. "Then I told the teacher."

People don’t like to be pushed or teased for getting good or bad grades or be made fun of for how they look. Sadly, about 1 in 7 schoolchildren is a bully or a victim of one. Five million elementary and middle school students in the U.S. are bullied each year, according to the National Association of School Psychologists. Each day, bullies’ teasing leads some 160,000 fearful kids to skip school.

The Big, Bad Bully
A recent study of bullies found that most often the popular kids, the ones liked by both kids and teachers, are doing the teasing. "Most bullies are the kids that other students look up to, the ones everybody wants to hang out with," says Dorothy Espelage, an assistant professor of psychology who co-authored the study.

Psychologist William Pollack agrees that too often a bully’s behavior is encouraged and not stopped. Some bullies become popular ringleaders with other kids, but not all bullies are the cool kids, he says. Some are troubled students who may have been bullied themselves.

Taking The Bully By The Horns
Schools across the U.S. are fighting back against bullying. Last week 36 states observed Safe Communities = Safe Schools Awareness Week. From October 15 to 21, about 300 communities held antibullying and antiviolence activities for kids. The week was coordinated by Safe Schools, Safe Students, an Arizona-based group founded by Rod Beaumont. He says the purpose of the awareness week is to make people realize that bullying and other types of school violence are not something that can just be ignored.

The organization arranges bullying-prevention workshops. Many of them are led by a huge, leather-wearing, tattoo-covered man called the Scary Guy. He challenges kids not to use mean words and not to push or shove others for at least seven days. "I was a bully my whole life," the Scary Guy admits, "but now I’m not."

The workshops teach kids that words can hurt just as much as physical violence. Rebecca Sassoon, 10, of New York City, knows this well. When Rebecca was 7 years old, she was bullied by three boys in her class for being too smart. "I got things right on tests, and they didn’t, so they teased me," she recalls. "I used to go home after school and cry."

Because bullying can start early, teachers in Massachusetts use bullying-prevention lessons with kids as young as age 5.

Suffern Middle School, about 40 miles north of New York City, is among many schools that have antibullying programs all year long. To kick off the program in September, the school held an assembly led by Show of Love, a group that teaches about respect. One week later, teachers, students and parents discussed how to promote politeness and civility throughout the year.

Bullies seem to have been around since school was invented! Can these new bully-busting programs really stop them? There may be hope. Spencer, a 10-year-old from Colorado, says bullies can change. "I teased people all the time when I was in second grade," he says, "but by third grade I got my act together. I didn’t like making other people feel bad."

Some kids, like Jenna Gray of Prescott, Arizona, have their doubts. "Sometimes the peer pressure can get to you," sighs Jenna, who has been both a bully and a victim. "It’s hard to get away from it."

What Should You Do If A Bully Bothers You?
Tips from Allan L. Beane, director of the Center for School Safety at Murray State University in Kentucky

• Tell a parent or a teacher. Parents and teachers want to know what happened and how you feel about it. You are not being a tattletale.
• If the bullying happened at school, have a parent discuss it with your teacher. Parents should not call the parents of the bully.
• Never be ashamed of an illness or a disability. When you feel O.K. about it, other kids will too.
• Don’t be an easy target. Look the bully in the eye and walk away confidently. Don’t get involved in a fight.
• Bullies want to hurt your feelings. Even if they’re being really mean, act as if they’re not succeeding.
• Stand up for other students who are bullied and ask them to stand up for you.
• Ask your parents to label your belongings with a permanent marker so a bully will be less likely to steal them.
• Find out more about bullying-prevention programs and how your school could participate.