Suicides, Lawsuits, and Petitions: The Results of Bullying in Schools
Bullying is not a thing of the past; it is real and continues today. Just ask the parents and friends of four youths who were bullied and when they could no longer tolerate it, the youths committed suicide. Bullying occurs in cities, towns, and rural areas across the nation.
The Las Vegas Review Journal reported that N.B., mother of fourteen-year-old C.J., identified bullying as the cause of her daughter’s suicide. Jamerson’s peers bullied her for years during school, starting in kindergarten, but the bullies went further: they used Facebook to falsely claim that she was pregnant and promiscuous. Numerous times, N.B. pleaded with school authorities for help for her daughter, but they claimed that her daughter was the cause of the bullying, or remarkably and sadly, they blamed the victim for the acts of the bullies. Hurt and disappointed, the mother planned to sue the school district.
C.J. however was not the only Las Vegas teen who was bullied and committed suicide. The media reported that thirteen-year-old H.L. committed suicide after bullies repeatedly attacked her self-image and purity. H.L.’s family blamed the school and sued the district. The school district responded by asking the court to dismiss the suit, arguing that regardless of motivation, the young girl was to blame for her own death, not the school district. H.L.s family and lawyer strongly disagreed and replied: state anti-bullying statutes are not suggestions for school authorities, but laws to be enforced and obeyed.
The suicides in Las Vegas are not isolated tragedies. Various news outlets reported that in Tennessee, eighteen-year-old J.R. and fourteen-year-old P.P. committed suicide in 2011 and 2012. Both boys’ bullies targeted them because they were different; they were homosexuals. Their suicides stunned friends and family. J.R. was a jokester and a bold Halloween dresser. P.P’s friends were aware that he was being bullied. Talks with school officials to prevent future bullying incidents apparently yielded little, if any, results. Friends and relatives of both youths regretted that they were unaware of the boys’ suicide plans. If they had known, they would have tried to intervene.
Before J.R. and P.P.’s suicides, Tennessee school districts’ anti-bullying policies dictated that school officials investigate bullying incidents, give the bullies’ stern warnings, talk with the victims and inquire if they are okay, and notify the victims’ parents of the incidents. However, friends and relatives of the boys and community members found these policies upsetting and too lenient on the bullies. They started petitions drives to revise the policies and require school authorities to crack down harder on bullies, offer more support and guidance to victims, and be more proactive in preventing bullying.
Bullying may severely affect boys and girls regardless of background, class, or race. Though not all bullying results in suicide, bullying inevitably causes unnecessary grief and anguish for kids and their parents and can result in a host of practical, emotional, or personal repercussions for the victims. Authorities should not tolerate bullying and sanction the bullies and hold them accountable for their actions.
If your child is being bullied, your child and you do not have to suffer in silence. There are legal remedies and rights available to your child and you. For more information, contact Attorney Perry A. Craft. He can answer your questions and fight for your child and you.
