October is a month designated to raise awareness about how much bullying hurts, and how you can help prevent bullying in your community, your school, and your life. An issue that we feel very strongly about... and we applaud the strong men and women, boys and girls, who speak out and be the change.
To kick us off, here is a very powerful statement by Jennifer Livingston, a brave WKBT TV 8 (Wisconsin) news anchor who dared to speak about about a hurtful comment made about her and her weight online - a form of bullying, for sure - and her colleagues, fans and husband came to her rescue on Facebook as one unified, powerful voice that said BULLYING IS NOT OKAY.
Her words are worth the watch (thanks to Jim Romenesko for bringing this to my attention here in the Boston area):
Her words are powerful, shiny, and worth repeating:
“The truth is, I am overweight. You can call me fat — and yes, even obese on a doctor’s chart. But to the person who wrote me that letter, do you think I don’t know that? That your cruel words are pointing out something that I don’t see? …Now I am a grown woman, and luckily for me I have a very thick skin, literally — as that email pointed out — and otherwise. That man’s words mean nothing to me, but really angers me about this is is there are children who don’t know better — who get emails as critical as the one I received or in many cases, even worse, each and every day. …
“I leave you with this: To all of the children out there who feel lost, who are struggling with your weight, with the color of your skin, your sexual preference, your disability, even the acne on your face, listen to me right now. Do not let your self-worth be defined by bullies. Learn from my experience — that the cruel words of one are nothing compared to the shouts of many.”
Right on, Jennifer... both parents and kids need to take a long hard look at bullying behavior, and make sure they are good role models for others. What do you think about Jennifer's statement?
1 comment:
I agree with you...so brave. But in addition to that, I love that she made this a bigger, broader issue... she didn't only address the hurtful comments directed to her, she didn't make this only about obesity or comments directed towards someone's size, but to ALL comments that hurt, and I love that.
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