Bust Bullying With Texting

The latest technology to beat bullying has been introduced by Blackboard.  This education technology has offered a new program, TipTxt, to schools for free as a confidential way that students can alert school officials of bullying through sending a text message.  The system sends an automated response to the text message that says the issue is being looked into and alerts the official who is monitoring the text feed.  The official has the opportunity to text back to try to gain more information from the sender or to reassure them that the situation will be taken care of.

New Education Bill Contains Important Anti-Bullying Protections For LGBT Students

Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) released the Strengthening America’s Schools Act of 2013, which is an amendment to the Elementary and Secondary Education Act that includes a variety of reforms designed to make American schools safer and more effective institutions.  The bill includes Sen. Al Franken’s (D-MN) Student Non-Discrimination Act, SNDA, which is focused on preventing harassment, discrimination, and violence in the public school system targeted at gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender youth.

National Anti-Bullying Program Enlists Young People

Heritage Minister James Moore announced the Canadian government would provide $250,000 in funding for a new national anti-bullying project run by The Canadian Red Cross. The project will train 2,400 teenagers on how to deliver bullying prevention workshops and connect with their peers. After training, each teen will commit to reaching out to at least 20 others in his or her community to create a larger conversation about bullying. The program will also host three youth-led forums, one each in British Columbia, Ontario and the Atlantic Region.

Protestors Make Their Voices Heard

18-year-old Benjamin O’Keefe took a stand against bullying when he started a Change.org petition to take action against Abercrombie’s exclusivity. After spotting Abercrombie CEO Mike Jeffries’ 2006 comments on the business news website Business Insider, O’Keefe asks for a public apology and a change in company policy, allowing larger consumers to comfortably wear Abercrombie clothing. Abercrombie & Fitch is making efforts to respond to critics’ claims that the brand excludes certain shoppers by sponsoring an anti-bullying campaign. But some of the retailer’s detractors are dismissing the move as “not enough” and “not sincere.”

Sibling Bullying Linked To Depression & Anxiety

Siblings fight. This has become a norm in society. A recent study now suggests that maybe fighting between siblings should no longer be ignored.  Bullying between siblings has been linked to high measures of depression and anxiety symptoms.  Although it cannot be proven easily that there is a direct connection this study brings the issue to light.

11-Year-Old Anti-Bullying Activist Gets State Representative’s Award Revoked

Marcel Neergaard is an 11-year-old boy from Oak Ridge Tennessee who is taking a giant stand to stop bullying. Tennessee State Representative John Ragan received an award for “reformer of the year” in April after introducing the Classroom Protection Act, or the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, earlier this year. Marcel felt that Ragan didn’t deserve the award and immediately started a petition to revoke the title. His petition quickly received 50,000 signatures and the award was revoked.

Montana Schools Realizes It’s Time for Change

Jill Sharp’s bullying started in middle school and continued consistently into high school. Sharp felt that she could ignore her bullies and they would grow out of it but when years went by with no change Sharp approached her principal with a binder full of evidence in hopes that something would be done. Her principal recommended that Sharp take legal action but her home state of Montana doesn’t have any anti-bullying legislation at all. Every other state has such laws in place.

Abercrombie Tries to Atone for Harmful Remarks of CEO

Abercrombie and Fitch has been taking steps to make up for the recent remarks of the CEO Mike Jeffries, who stated that he only wants “thin and beautiful people” shopping in his stores. The company and Jeffries himself have issued an official apology for his harmful and discriminatory remarks.