So I bet you just read that title and thought, well obviously, bullying is wrong.
But I wanted to post a little reminder, because I don't think that everyone gets something really important. Bullying happens for many reasons. I think there is a little misconception. That to bully, is to be unjustifiably mean. That if your a bully that no matter what the reasons you have for bulling can't be justified. And someone who bullies can't be empathised with by a normal rational person.
Well today I have learnt that this is not true. I don't want to bully the person who helped me learn this, and I don't want anyone to hate them. I want people to think about their own behaviours.
So there is this person in my school who is strange, has many issues and who can be quite abusive to people who have different views to themself. So they aren't the most popular person in the school. I have said mean things about her and I'm not going to deny that. But I was bullying, my cruel behaviour of gossiping behind her back, although mild, was bullying. But this person who helped me realise the complexity of bullying was saying to me today that their behaviour was justified due to the distress that this person had inflicted on others. I am learning that it is not the case, it is the opposite, this person who has caused distress to others is avoided; I do this myself as I don't enjoy being in their presence. I think this is fair although some may disagree. But I draw the line now, at myself and people around me (that outnumber them) abusing them. They are already avoided, because of their behaviours, I think this is fair as they can be hurtful. But abusing them as well, is too far. Bullying a mean abusive person is no fairer than abusing a kind soft spoken person. Everyone is human and spreading hate doesn't make the mean person any less mean it just makes the person abusing them feel better. I was guilty of being selfish in this way but then I thought about the impact is has that's positive, and there is none. It could even make the abusive person more abusive. I just wanted people to think about that for a bit.
