Bullying: What to Do About It Although it’s always been around,
bullying should never be accepted as normal behavior. The
feelings experienced by victims of bullying are painful and
lasting. Bullies, if not stopped, can progress to more serious,
antisocial behavior. Recent incidents of school violence show
that bullying can have tragic consequences for individuals,
families, schools, and entire communities. Recognize It (for
what it is) Bullying is aggressive behavior. A child is targeted
by one or more youths with repeated negative actions over a
period of time. These are intentional attempts to cause
discomfort or injury and can include name-calling, making faces,
obscene gesturing, malicious teasing, threats, rumors, physical
hitting, kicking, pushing, and choking. More subtle is simply
excluding a child from the group. Generally, bullying occurs
when there’s an imbalance of power favoring the bully. Victims
usually feel they don’t have the strength to defend themselves.
Make no mistake, bullying is a form