The “No Hate Tour” made a stop at Warhill High School on Friday, March 15th. The highlight of the tour was the BMX bikers, two of whom earned medals at the X Games in their sport. The crowd, filled with students, faculty and staff, watched in awe as the riders performed thrilling jumps and gravity-defying tricks.
Their message was a clear one: No Hate, which also means no bullying. They spoke about how to manage bullying if you are the one bullied.
Bullying can affect a student long after they leave high school. The emotional scars left by the bully can make a person live a lifetime under that shadow. And a shadow it is. One who feels he/she is being bullied can feel hopeless, worthless, or both. The bullied will feel that they do not fit in anywhere. This is especially dangerous to those students with a small friend group, or worse, with no friend group at all.
It has long been known that bullies project their insecurities and issues onto those they bully. Often, however, the victim does not recognize that the names he/she is called are what the bullies feel about themselves. Bullying can and has led to devastating outcomes. Studies have shown that bullying aggravates depression and increases suicide risk for both the victim and the perpetrator.
Together, Warhill and the No Hate Club, sponsors of this year’s “No Hate Tour,” want everyone to know and recognize that if one does not have something nice to say, then he/she should not say anything at all.
“Nearly one-quarter of tenth graders who reported being bullied also reported having made a suicide attempt in the past 12 months,” according to a Washington State Healthy Youth Survey, and “cyberbullying caused kids to consider suicide more than traditional bullying,” according to a study in JAMA Pediatrics. Warhill has a zero-tolerance, no-bullying policy.
There is help if you feel bullied. Speak to a trusted adult at the school and get the process started. You are not alone. If you are bullied and feel you need immediate help, please call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at 988.
