If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
I'm choosing to stand up as a Spirit Day Ambassador because I know what it's like to be bullied. I know the pain that LGBT youth are facing, the self-hatred and the disappointment. There is a real need for legislation against bullying, but even more so, there is a need for allies.
As our White House visit ended I thought about the time spent with our nation's leaders. Reflecting on the discussions, I realized that we had expended a great deal energy and emotion over two days.
During tonight's debate, we'll hear both candidates' plans for how they plan to lead America to a better tomorrow. For young people like me and for families like mine, a better tomorrow is one where no one has to go to school afraid of being bullied because of who they are.
"We knew who beat him up. We knew who locked him in a cupboard. We knew who had held his head under water in a sink. So why hadn't we told anyone?"
I'm a Spirit Day Ambassador for the same reason that I shared my story of growing up as a young trans girl: Only by amplifying our voices and sharing our truth, in its wide array of brilliant colors, do we learn to accept and embrace one another. I urge you to wear purple Oct. 19.
Our culture is fascinated with the image of the mean girl. Reality TV shows like The Real Housewives of New York and The Jersey Shore feature real-life mean girls in action, publicly humiliating and spreading nasty rumors about each other.
Childhood can be a profoundly lonely experience. Whether it's walking to school wishing for a friend, or sitting by oneself on the bus or dreading the endless minutes in the cafeteria, our children need fortification.
Woodson lets her child readers know that actions are not always reversible, sometimes you have to live with your mistakes. But she also makes it clear that you can learn from them.
Yes, bullying happens and yes, it can be bad, but the last thing we need is to create the impression that its common because if it's common it must be normal and if it's normal it must be okay. It's not normal and it's not okay.
October is National Bullying Awareness Month, and as we ask our children and our schools to prevent bullying, we ought to take a hard look at ourselves too. Recent attacks on an overweight female Wisconsin TV anchor -- and her response -- illustrate the point.
We are failing to protect our kids. We are failing to provide safe environments conducive to learning -- not just academic lessons, but also life lessons about being part of a community and finding workable solutions to seemingly intractable problems.
I am calling for the formation of groups of "Rainbow Berets" within schools. These would be concerned peer groups that would stand up to the circumstances that inspire bullying. They would be visible in their schools and would serve as safe confidants.
October is also now recognized as National Bullying Prevention Month. On the one hand, I'm thrilled that we are giving this critical issue such focused attention. But on the other hand, I am deeply saddened that bullying in our nation has reached such epidemic proportions.
Anti-gay bullying truncates a child's academic ability to excel. And the cost, while immediately about the child, is an equally greater cost to us as a society down the road. Anti-gay bullying is not to be endured or tolerated. It must be stopped by us all.
More and more in the public square are actions and language indicative of scapegoating, gulling, and victimization.
Friendship, family and core values can trump fears, politics and lack of knowledge. But I also must remind you that many families cannot be this open because the risk is too great. Many families have similar stories tell and most cannot. This has to change!
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