 |
|
|
 |
|
|
 |
|
|
 |
|
|
 |
|
|
 |
|
|
 |
|
|
 |
|
|
 |
|
|
 |
|
|
 |
|
|
 |
17 year old Rachael Neblett, a victim of cyberbullying, died by suicide October 9, 2007
Interview with John Halligan who's 13-year old son, Ryan, died by suicide as a result of bullying at school and online.
"If you are a victim of bullying, please tell someone!"
|
"We need the children to know how serious this is, that it is not fun and games. Bullying can be as dangerous as a gun, or a drunk driver. " -Shauna Kasey |
April 15, 2008
KENTUCKY becomes the 35th state to pass an anti bullying law!
Read the new law rated A++ by BullyPolice.org
Does your state have bullying legislation?
BullyPolice.org is a watch-dog organization advocating for bullied children and reporting on state anti-bullying laws.
From Kentucky Attorney General's Office...
What is Cyberbullying?
“Cyberbullying is when a child, preteen or teen is tormented, threatened, harassed, humiliated, embarrassed or otherwise targeted by another child, preteen or teen using the Internet, interactive and digital technologies or mobile phones.”
Cyberbullies use chat rooms, email, instant messaging, and social networking websites to make threats, share gossip, spread lies or distribute embarrassing pictures to a wide audience while maintaining some anonymity.
- Stealing someone’s online name and using it to write nasty rumors, comment, or spread gossip.
- Altering someone’s message or doctoring photographs to say something different or poke fun at a person.
- Secretly recording conversations using a cell phone, then playing the recording back for the person being discussed.
- Posting damaging information on blogs or web sites.
- Creating or taking part in Internet polling.
Dealing with Cyberbullying
Teach children to:- Stop Don’t respond to the bully. Victims often want to befriend the bully to solve the problem or even worse they want to retaliate. Responding to the cyberbully only escalates the problem, and in turn, the victim becomes part of the problem.
- Block Block the cyberbully or limit all communications to those you can trust. It may be necessary to delete the child's current account and open a new one that limits access to trusted friends.
- Tell Tell a trusted adult. The messages posted by the cyberbully are often vulgar or embarrassing. Victims often keep the bullying a secret for this reason. Encourage children to tell someone if they are harassed or threatened online or if someone they know is bullied.
If your child is bullied online:
- Do not erase the evidence
- Contact your Internet provider, the social networking site, or cell phone company and file a complaint
- Contact the child’s school if the bullying is school-related
- Contact local law enforcement if your child has been threatened or if a crime has been committed.
- Report cyberbullying to wiredsafety.org
If the cyberbully makes statements which places the victim in reasonable fear for his or her physical safety or if the cyberbully continues to threaten or harass the victim, despite warnings, notify law enforcement.
A cyberbully can be traced. Each time the Internet is accessed, an IP (Internet Protocol) address, a type of electronic fingerprint, is established. This IP address can be used by the authorities to trace all electronic communications between computers and/or mobile phones.
Cyberstalking is a crime!!
Cyperbullying Statistics
One in three online teens have experienced online harassment. and teens who share their identities and thoughts on social networking sites, such as MySpace and FaceBook, are more likely to be targets than are those who do not use social networking sites. Nearly 4 in 10 social network users (39%) have been cyberbullied in someway, compared with 22% of online teens who do not use social networks.
Here are some additional cyberbullying statistics from iSafe.
- 22% of students know someone who has been bullied online.
- 19% of students admit to saying something hurtful to others online.
- 12% of students have personally become upset by strangers online.
- 90% of middle school students have had their feelings hurt online.
- 75% have visited a web site bashing another student
- 40% have had their password(s) stolen and changed by a bully
Only 15% of parents polled knew what cyberbullying was!
Data based on 2005-06 iSafe survey of 13,000 students in grades 5 to 12.
Consequences of Cyberbullying
- Youths who are harassed are almost three times as likely to carry a weapon to school.
- Students who are harassed are more likely to report being part of a gang.
- Harassed students were much more likely to report engaging in self-endangering or harmful behaviors, including a dramatic increase in heavy drug use; they are also twice as likely to consider and/or attempt suicide.
(Public Health Data Watch, 2002)
Resources for Parents and Educators
Suggestions for Parents when Dealing with Bullying and Cyberbullying
How to Stop or Remove Cyber Info
Delete Cyberbullying PSA - National Crime Prevention Council