Thank you to whoever responds to my Discussion Board!!
This article was posted by the New York Times on February 1 st, about a tragedy at a New Jersey high school. The victim of this tragedy is Adriana Kuch, who chose to commit suicide because of the bullying. It is believed that the video of the victim’s attack was posted on Tiktok and that she chose to commit suicide because she could not bear the humiliation. The violence in this video is extremely brutal, with four girls beating Adriana and hitting her square in the face with a water bottle.
After the incident, many people in the community stood up for Adriana’s tragedy and judged the bullying as well as the neglect of administration officials. Many students and staff members at the school willingly resigned to express the injustice of the incident. However, until the public came forward, Adriana’s tragedy may have been as underappreciated as the bullying that was covered up at the high school.
According to details, a Facebook post reported that the school was deliberately covering up the bullying, and a mother of a current student reported malicious neglect by the school, indicating that her daughter was experiencing the same thing as Adriana, but the school did nothing, and even when it was reported to the police, the police did nothing. This has caused serious emotional damage to her daughter. What angered me the most was that “the school district denied the O’Dea family’s complaints of negligence, infliction of emotional distress and other harm.” All of this was the choice that led to the eventual suicide of Adriana. According to experts, most children who receive bullying do not choose to take their own lives, except in cases where they know, without any help, that extreme self-destructive behavior will develop. Fortunately, eventually, with the help of the public, the principal was dismissed and the police convicted the four individuals in question.
Can you stand that the victim’s family is grieving while the abuser is on the loose? I can’t.
Okay, Question Time 🙂
1. If you saw a person being bullied by another person, would you be willing to step in and save them or stand up for them? If so, in what way?
2. There are many examples of bullying around us. Tell us about an incident you have seen or heard about and who is responsible for it.
3. In many countries where bullies escape prosecution because they are almost underage and they receive only minor punishments, do you think the laws of the country should pursue the crime of being underage? Explain.
I feel bad when seeing people bullied but honestly, I’m afraid of getting in trouble if I stand up for the low power. Compared with directly fighting back, I prefer speaking out in a safer way. The conservative way is meant to be less effective, so it’s hard for me to say which approach is better. Regarding the third question, I support that the government should establish laws to pursue the crime of being underage. Although immaturity is characteristic of young people, I believe that age is not an excuse for bullying and violence, and it will never be. It’s acceptable that the punishment for teenagers can be reduced, but there should be a standard to remind teenagers that everything they do has consequences so that they can be more behaved and civil.
I agree with you. We are just ordinary people don’t want trouble to happen to us. First, we are worried about the person being bullied. Second, we also worried about whether we will be remembered by the bully if we help the person being bullied, and the bullied person became us. That is the reason I choose a conservative approach, one is to solve the problems, second is not to expose myself. And I definitely agree with pursuing the legal responsibility of minors. We can’t let the criminal escape because of the other party’s young age. Because as long as they are let go once, they will have the next time. So must be constrained.
Same, I do believe people who made one mistake and didn’t get punished would be more likely to make the same mistake or hurt one person another since they never tasted the punishment.
–Even though some people would avoid doing the same wrong twice but I don’t think anyone is willing to sacrifice because giving the opportunity to a person who we don’t even know is good or bad in essence.
I very much agree with you. First of all, our personal power is very limited. If we help recklessly, it may backfire and even put ourselves at risk. Therefore, I also agree to choose more conservative ways to help, such as helping to report or calling the police. I agree with you on the third question. Perpetrators should be punished regardless of their age. Age has never been an excuse for exoneration. Young age can reduce the punishment, but it cannot directly exonerate the crime. They must deeply understand that some behaviors are not advisable.
I agree with you because I would also better speak out against seeing someone bullying because that is the safer way. We would not like to get harmed so getting to tell adults who can take action and help to know how to help in a bullying situation. Furthermore, I think that no one’s age should be used as a justification for bullying or violence because everyone should treat others with respect and has the ability to do so, but some individuals just choose not to. Bullies should not just get modest sanctions since they are minors; they should also be enrolled in a program that teaches them how to recognize or stop their wrongdoing and behave properly.
I agree with you because we can’t admit that humans are selfish. We care about ourself more than any other people so I don’t really want to get in trouble for something that is originally not my business. Of course I feel bad for what she had experienced but I believe if she fight her back herself by either talking back or telling it to someone that can solve the problem, the people bullying won’t be brave enough to continue the nonsense. I think her self action means more.
I agree with you 100%. Our strength alone is very limited. Sometimes the perpetrators may be many people. If we help others blindly, we may put ourselves in danger. We can choose a safer method to help others.
1. If I see someone being bullied by another, I am willing to step in to save them. I will choose to seek help from adults, such as responsible people and the police, without exposing myself.
2. This is the real situation when I was in the seventh grade in China. At that time, our classes were divided into morning classes and afternoon classes, so I ate lunch near the school gate. As a result, I found that there was a sound of beating and scolding coming from an alley on that street, and people nearby noticed it (the students who went to the same junior high school as me, because China has school uniforms), I sneaked a little from the alley on the other side. I observed in the corner, and the bullying incident was also a student of my school, and I still know the girl who was bullied. But I couldn’t dissuade it alone, and it was easy to burn myself. Later, I ran to the street to find the shop owner I knew and asked him for help. Then this matter is over.
3. I think the laws of the country should investigate the crime of bullying minors. Just because the other party is a minor cannot forgive the mistakes made by this person, and the bully is likely to intensify because he/she will not be bound by legal responsibility. Furthermore, if the bullied person dies because of this, who will pay for the life of the innocent person? Wouldn’t the parents of the bullied be sad? Therefore, if a bully acts in a way that endangers others, he /she should be held accountable by law.
I think you’re right that it’s better to seek help from others when you spot a bullying situation than to do it yourself. I also agree with you that a bully should not be forgiven for his crimes just because he is a minor, it is not fair to the victim.
Indeed, I found that in some countries, the punishment or legal investigation for school violence is not serious. It can almost be said that the case of bullying is very perfunctory, and at most it is a warning. Although this is the protection of minors, it is also a helper to promote bullying on campus. Those who bully are more presumptuous by the fact that they will not suffer big punishment.
Thank you for answering all my questions. I can sense that you are a smart and brave person from the things you described. The person you saved will be grateful to you.
When I see campus bullying, I will try to report them and inform the teacher of this phenomenon. Because I am not a strong person, I will not stop the confrontation with the bully on the spot to protect my own safety. But I will try to help the bullied find some solutions. In short, I will try to save them in my own way. If everyone sits idly by, it will easily contribute to this bad phenomenon. When you are bullied, you also hope that others can help you. Bullying on campus here, silence is also a kind of harm.
I think it’s natural to hesitate when you see someone being bullied. This is because it is fearful that if I become a target or get into the trouble when I helped, and this will be unbearable. A person who helps the victim without hesitation would be a very courageous and cool person. However, helping victims is not only about stopping the perpetrators directly. There are also ways to report school violence and to comfort and be friends with victims. We should try to help victims in the best way we can.
I think I have not encountered serious bullying, but there was bullying in the I attended in my country. It’s not serious but it takes a toll on the victim. Some people form cliques in class, and they isolate those they don’t like. Do some excessive behavior in some small things, for example, if a girl drops her pen on the ground, those people will kick her pen away when they see it. The pen was right under my feet. When I was about to pick up the pen and return it to the girl, those people told me not to return it to her. I feel sorry for her, even though I gave her the pen back after those people left, I couldn’t stop them face to face. They once asked me to lend them my mobile phone to play with. Later, I heard from other students that they didn’t treat my mobile phone well, and it was dropped on the ground. So I am very glad that you can stand up bravely. Silence is also a kind of silent harm.
From the perspective of a bystander, I will not intervene in bullying incidents, because intervening will have various consequences. Such as being one of the victims, or being isolated because other people don’t want to participate in the problem. Whether to save the bullied person is an ethical debate all over the world. It is not the responsibility of people to sacrifice themselves to save a human being, and most people would not want to sacrifice for a stranger. this is the reality. Talking about this topic, it reminds me that the day before I read this article, I saw a question on TicTok. “If there are have two bottles of water in front of you and a stranger, you know that one of them is poisonous. Would you choose to drink the poisoned one to save the stranger? Or have the normal water to save yourself?” My answer to this question is that I would drink the non-poisonous one, no doubt about it. It is not my responsibility to save other people’s lives because I have my own family, studies and career to care about.
In fact, what you said is not wrong. We seem so small in the face of huge forces. We are rarely in a position to help the victim when a big bullying incident is involved. It would actually be really hard and risky to save that person.
1. I will stand up and help if I see others being bullied. Still, the way I help is more inclined to report or call the police because I am too weak alone. As a result, I may be unable to defeat those bullies and even endanger myself.
2. There is endless news about campus bullying. Recently, I heard the news that in a university in China, a teacher bullied a student with good character and academics for a long time because he discriminated against him. During this time, the students did not stand up for him. Ultimately, the student chose to commit suicide on the day of the Mid-Autumn Festival. The young man who was supposed to have a bright future but stopped at 20. Due to the intervention of capitalists and the school’s non-recognition. The incident that led to last year’s Mid-Autumn Festival has not allowed the perpetrators to be punished until now.
3. I think the Minor Protection Law’s significance is to protect minors’ physical and mental health. So how is it fair for the victim if the perpetrator is forgiven because he is a minor? This does not protect the physical and psychological health of the victim, so this violates the meaning of the existence of the law on the protection of minors. So, I think that as long as they are perpetrators, they should be punished, even if they are underage.
Every time I saw this type of news that you mentioned in the second bullet point, I feel angry and at the same time sad. In most cases, the bullies have a good family background, which can alleviate their sins and even cover up the facts; however, the bullied will suffer endless physical and mental torture.
I have also seen this news, I was feeling very angry and sad. The student’s grades were really good and he had a lot of achievements, but because his teachers discriminated against him, he was often bullied, and the most angry school’s inaction and the management’s intervention led to the final outcome of the matter.
I have also seen this news, I was feeling very angry and sad. The student’s grades were really good and he had a lot of achievements, but because his teachers discriminated against him, he was often bullied, and the most angry school’s inaction and the management’s intervention led to the final outcome of the matter.
Yeah, I agree. I feel like mindlessly standing up to a bully that is physically stronger than you may endanger both you and the victim. So i agree that calling the people would be a safer option. I feel like maybe calling a teacher may be quicker, since it does take a while for the police to come. I feel like the bullies should be punished no matter the age because there are so many warning about the harms of bullying. Yet, the bullies still made the choice to bully another kid, so i feel like they should be punished.
I was very shocked when I read the news you mentioned. After all, you are a college student, and the perpetrator also caused the death of this student. This matter is very serious in my opinion, and I hope that the relevant departments can deal with it in time.
To be honest, If i see a person that I don’t know being bullied, I won’t step up and help them because it would cause trouble for myself. If I step up and talk for her, the people that bully her might bully me too and I don’t think I can make the situation better myself. I think the best way for her is to speak it out to an adult and get the problem solved instead of keeping it in. The most common bullying I see nowadays is cyber bully online. A recent news I saw on TikTok about a girl who just got her master degrees and went to show her grandpa that passed away got cyber bullied by people online for her pink hair. People commented on why she dyed her hair to see a person that passed away and keep saying dirty words on her. This lead to her having depression and later suicide. I feel really bad for her because she just finished college and she originally can have a bright future with her mastered degree but her life is ruined by some random strangers that she don’t even know. The power of bullying is really strong. Nobody should be bullying another for any reason regardless of age so I think laws should be created to pursue teenagers for this. They should be responsible for what they do.
Indeed, when we see others being bullied, it is hard for us to stand up and help them. We all have to make sure we can be safe first before we can help each other, and if we can’t, we can easily become the next victim. Internet violence is always the cruelest, everyone is bashing someone they don’t know, and sometimes I wonder why. Why hurt someone you’ve never even met.
Cyberbullying does not inflict direct violence, but I think it is the easiest bullying to break and hurt the victim’s mentality. The cyberbullying I’ve seen was they take shameful photos of the student and upload them on social media without permission, invites them to group texts to curse, post bad comments. Cyberbullying keeps them attacked and hurt even when the victim is not together with them. The influence of cyberbullying is huge, and this makes it difficult for many people.
If I see someone being bullied, I may hesitate because I need to make sure I’m safe before I can go save someone else. There have not been many incidents of bullying around me, although I have heard or seen many bullying incidents on the news. Many of the victims in these incidents were students, and one of the most memorable incidents for me happened to a college boy. His grades were very good, but his teachers did not recognize or discriminate against him, resulting in frequent bullying and injustice, and eventually, the student chose to commit suicide because of the prolonged bullying. The student’s parents tried to get justice for their son, but the teacher has not been punished until now due to the intervention of the school and the management. I believe that the law of the land should hold these minors accountable for their crimes, and that crime and good and evil have nothing to do with age. These bullies are not unaware that they are committing a crime, but they also know that underage crimes do not carry heavy penalties, which is why they dare to bully others so much.
Hi, Zhiling! I agree with you because even we might have the feeling and sympathy to help others, we need to make sure our own safety. I think school bullying are the most common types of bully in nower days. I think I have heard a similar news on school bully too. The victim call “Gaoyan” and he get discriminated by his teacher because He didn’t get into the class by a professional examination, so the teacher was abusing him by language which make him Diagnosed depression and committed suicide. But the teacher also did not receive punishment for his responsibility, which made me feel very angry too.
People who ruin a person’s life should be punished strongly regardless of their age. If they don’t properly get punishments because they are under 18, they won’t reflect on their wrong actions, and they won’t be aware of what they’ve done wrong. I think all laws that seem to protect minors who are perpetrators should disappear. It is so terrible that teenagers, who should have the most enjoyable and good memories, have bad experiences and trauma due to school violence. Victims of school violence would have trauma, and school violence will cause great damage to the victim’s life and have a great impact on relationships with people even after graduating school. Efforts should be made to eliminate school violence by strengthening the punishment of school violence.
I agree with you because school violences and trauma can really follow someone for life and leave a scar that will affect one’s future. So I also think that the students should be punished for bullying no matter the age because if you are bullying someone, then you are able to understand the harm that it may bring to others. A punishment can also help decrease the amount of students getting bullied each year.
To be real honest, if I see someone that I don’t know being bullied, I will be too scared to stand up for them. I am afraid to cost troubles with those around me or bring problems onto myself. Maybe one way that I can try to help instead of directly standing up to the bully will be calling for someone with a higher authority power than mine like a teacher and such. I think someone example of bullying may be socially distancing from one and leaving them alone. Excluding people from games or events and such. I think the law should include a stricter punishment for bullying because that will help stop a lot of people from bullying. Another reason is that bullying causes a long term effect on its victims such as traumas. At times bullying also results in physical harm and horrible decisions.
I think it’s a normal reaction, when someone you don’t know is being bullied, you want to help them, but subconsciously you think about your own safety and the safety of those around you. This is helpless, but very realistic. If it’s not someone you know well, it can be hard to help that person and leave everything behind. Either way, I think it’s good to be willing to help them. Some things cannot be handled by oneself, and it is more secure to let someone stronger and more powerful than oneself handle them.
If I see a person being bullied. I don’t hesitate to help them. Because I will compare my heart to my heart, and I don’t want to be bullied. I also hope that someone can help me when I am bullied. I will choose to call the police to deal with it. There is no bullying happening around me, at least in my opinion. In my opinion, the country should enact laws to hold minors accountable, because bullying is a serious crime in my opinion. Perpetrators cannot go unpunished because of their age.
For me, if I see someone being bullied by another, I would be willing to step in and save them, but I would not choose to stand up against the perpetrators in public, knowing that it would put me in danger and make me suffer. The situation for the victims is even more difficult. In any case, I will silently collect evidence and give some help to the victims. I hope that what I bring to them is effective help instead of making their situation worse. I recently saw a comment on a video talking about bullying, she was a victim of school bullying. She said: “I want someone to help me, but I don’t want the people who come to help me to be hurt, so don’t come to help me, as long as you don’t isolate me with them.” She once asked her teacher for help, Then the teacher helped her criticize those bullies, but those bullies would continue to bully her in places where the teacher could not see, even worse than before. I feel bad because I feel powerless about it. I think the law should pursue juvenile crimes, and juveniles cannot be a reason for them to commit crimes. I saw a lot of news about juvenile delinquency mentioned that they claimed that they were minors, and the law would not punish them to go to jail, they just went to the police station or juvenile detention center for a few days and then came out. They were not afraid, and even proud, of their criminal deeds. If the minors that the law should really protect are suffering, then what is the point of juvenile crime immunity from punishment?
First of all, after seeing this news, I feel sad and regretful because a young girl committed suicide under the pain of bullying and cyber violence. In campus life, students are more likely to be bullied than in social life, so the high suicide rate of students is also the result. In my opinion, bullying students is the most hateful thing. If someone I know is bullied, I will be willing to intervene and save them, and at the same time, I will notify the teacher to come, and stop the bullying through action. In my high school, I once saw a campus violence incident. I heard that several black students quarreled and clashed in the exchange and fought in the corridor with a word of disagreement. A few minutes later, the teachers and principals came together to stop the violence. The incident was serious in the school because the school attached great importance to the violence on campus, so the students who finally committed campus violence were expelled from the school. For me, family and school education are important in a person’s growth process. Once parents neglect the management of their children, it is easy to cause mental defects in children, and then violence occurs in school. I think the law should take the bullying behavior of minors seriously so that every family will take their children’s behavior in life seriously.
I couldn’t agree with you more, in the old days we went to the same high school and I was also very impressed by the black mass brawl you mentioned. Many teenagers these days have a hard time controlling their emotions and speaking hurtful words without careful thought, which can end up in a lot of bad manners and injuries. I also agree with you that not only schools but also parents should supervise and teach their children at a young age to avoid them becoming bullies when they grow up.
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To be honest, it will depend on the situation, sometimes I will want to help in the bottom of my heart, but if that happens in reality, I might be too afraid to stand up and help because I know I am to weak to go against the “bad guys” and I don’t want to get myself in trouble ( It might sound so selfish but it’s the reality) However, I will try my best to help in my ability. In reality, the types of bully I have seen was a kind of cyber bully, I saw a group of people attacking a girl with dirty words on social media and Posting many “ugly photos” of her. At that time, I felt that the girl was really innocent, because even if she did something wrong, they should not post other people’s privacy on a public social media, this group of people should be responsible for their own behavior. I think bullies should be severely punished because age is not a reason for them to being “evil” and bully others. They need to punished accordingly and know the consequences and learn form it. If they are able to escape the consequences so easily, there will be more and more victims because they don’t have to pay for what they say.
To me watching someone being bullied doesn’t matter what their family background is, what kind of person they are, race, religion, gender, hobbies, age, etc. I don’t discriminate or bully them because they have certain characteristics, if I see someone being bullied whether I know the person or not, I will stand up for them and help them. In response to your article, I am very sorry and angry about what happened to Adriana Kuch, many teachers and police officers take these bullies lightly which eventually led to the tragedy of Adriana Kuch, and things like this continue to happen in many countries around the world I am sure not just New Jersey. I was bullied by many of my friends when I was a child because of my looks and lack of connections, but they would not go too far, they at least did not insult me or my family and did not physically hurt me too much, but these injuries led me to become autistic and low self-esteem, but fortunately I grew up and knew how to let go of many things and not to care, that is I saved myself. I think many teenagers in today’s society are very precocious and they should be given more severe punishment under the Juvenile Protection Act as a warning to teenagers not to take any chances.