At the beginning of Bullying Prevention Month, we shared the UCLA psychology study [1] that showed 70.6% of teens have seen bullying occur in their schools. However, if someone intervenes, the bullying stops within 10 seconds.
All month, we’ve shared stories of amazing UPstanders who have stepped up and lent their voice to stop bullying and intolerance in one of the following ways:
- Safely intervening to STOP someone from being bullied,
- Running to get help from a trusted adult,
- Reaching out in kindness to and befriend the person who was being bullied, or
- Getting involved in Not In Our School and the movement to end bullying and all forms of intolerance.
No matter their age, these UPstanders are role models for all of us:
Preschooler Stands Up to Bullying
Preschooler Coleman Steele was left out from playing with the older kids, and that inspired him to say, “Don’t say you can’t play.” He put together his own Anti-Bullying rendition to Sam Smith's hit, "Stay With Me" and titled it “Play With Me.” [2]
2 Million Support Bullied 11-Year-Old
Elementary student Colin was teased and bullied. His mom was so sad that he had no friends to wish him a happy birthday and, with help from Facebook, he suddenly had 2 million friends. What’s more, it transformed him. Now in middle school, he joined us for an anti-bullying training in northern Michigan, where his keynote speech to 300 people earned him a standing ovation [3].
Band Creates Anti-Bullying Anthem
Teenage members of the rock group, Galvanized Souls, have also been bullied and they are standing up with their song “Carry On,” that features Colin. Check out the guitarist Zakk Silveira [4], their PSA on being an UPstander [5], and their great Facebook page [6].
Defining the word UPstander
College students Monica Mahal and Sarah Decker have been upstanders since high school, when they helped organize a citywide anti-bullying campaign as students at Watchung Hills Regional High School in New Jersey [7]. Now they’re working to get the word “upstander in the dictionary.” Sign their Change.org petition here [8].
Wearing Orange for Unity Day
Youth and adults alike stood together on Oct. 22, Unity Day, a day where people wore orange to show their support for safer schools and communities in an effort to put an end to bullying.
Left: Twitter user @VicSoSickk [9] shared this photo of her and her friends wearing orange to support Unity Day 2014. She says, "When we stand together, no one stands alone. #NoMoreBullying."
As National Bullying Prevention Month comes to a close, know that it does not stop here. You can start at any moment. Remember it just takes 10 seconds to turn things around!
Our Not In Our School team is happy to help you start a bullying prevention campaign in your school! Check out the Not In Our School Anti-Bullying Quick Start Guide [10] or contact us via email [11].
Learn more about the Be an Upstander: Lend Your Voice campaign here. [12]