Bullying has probably been with us ever since the early days of the first human community. But just because bullies have always been with us, that doesn't mean the rest of us should throw up our hands and say it's inevitable that the vulnerable ones among us are going to be picked on. That it's always been that way and will always be thus.
The protection of the vulnerable needs to be a community concern. That's where National Bullying Prevention Month comes in.
In 2006, PACER kicked off a bullying prevention week. In the last seven years, the outreach has grown to become a month long campaign.
PACER is the acronym for Parent Advocacy Coalition for Educational Rights, founded in 1977 by parents of children with disabilities. PACER works together with 18 disability organizations.
PACER's National Bullying Prevention Center has teamed up this year with Green Giant. Their goal is to help parents "raise a giant". You can sign in to Raise A Giant and write a letter to your children to nurture their ability to stand up for themselves and others against bullies.
PACER has put together a Student Event Toolkit along with Facebook. The guide can be an aid in planning, promoting and holding school and community events.
Katie Gorscak of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services wrote on Sept. 30, 2013 that October is a time to remind communities about the existence of bullying and the need for it to be stopped.
To this end, the Federal Partners in Bullying Prevention have begun several campaigns and resources via StopBullying.gov for young people, parents, teachers and the media.
Media Guidelines for Bullying Prevention provide assistance to bloggers, journalists, and others against bullying to write and increase awareness.
Young people are encouraged to hold bullying prevention social and educational engagement events via community youth organizations. Visit StopBullying.gov, and use their Tumblr page.
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) will release a Conversation Starters Mobile App to enable parents to talk with their children about being bullied ... or being bullies.
If you'd like to be kept up to speed about current bullying prevention resources you can
sign up to receive email updates from StopBullying.gov.
"Like" the StopBullying.gov Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/StopBullying.Gov/
StopBullying.gov offers information from government agencies about bullying, cyberbullying, who needs protecting, and what you can do to aid in this protection.
StopBullying.gov content has been provided by the StopBullying.gov Editorial Board. These partners are: the Department of Education (ED), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), the Substance Abuse and Medical Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), and the Department of Justice (DOJ).
StopBullying.gov is affiliated with the Federal Partners in Bullying Prevention Steering Committee (interagency effort of the Department of Education). The committee includes representatives from the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Defense, Education, Health and Human Services, the Interior, and Justice. It also includes the Federal Trade Commission and the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.
StopBullying.gov cautions that : "Due to the lapse in government funding, only web sites supporting excepted functions will be updated unless otherwise funded. As a result, the information on this website may not be up to date, the transactions submitted via the website may not be processed, and the agency may not be able to respond to inquiries until appropriations are enacted."
Sources:
October is National Bullying Prevention Month. PACER.org. Retrieved Oct. 8, 2013.
http://www.pacer.org/bullying/nbpm
PACER CenterPACER.org. Retrieved Oct. 8, 2013.
http://www.pacer.org
About PACER CenterPACER.org. Retrieved Oct. 8, 2013.
http://www.pacer.org/about
A Month of Learning for Bullying Prevention Awareness Month. StopBullying.gov. Retrieved Oct. 8, 2013.
http://www.stopbullying.gov/blog/2013/09/30/month-learning-bullying-prev...
About Us: Mission. StopBullying.gov. Retrieved Oct. 8, 2013.
http://www.stopbullying.gov/about-us/index.html
Visit Jody's website at http://www.ncubator.ca
Reviewed October 9, 2013
by Michele Blacksberg RN