“Bullying is bad.”

We’ve heard that slogan since we were young. We’ve been taught all our lives that bullying is not acceptable and yet it still happens every day.  

High school is a bully’s playground, and no one does a thing to stop them.

Here at K-Park, some students get bullied to the point that they’re used to it. That’s not okay.

“I can’t say I blame the school, it’s just the people here,” said junior Stori Zook. “There’s always those people who hate everything and take it out on people.”

In online reviews of K-Park, other students have also shared stories of being bullied and of how they feel the officials handled it. Most talk about favoritism and how only certain people get their problems handled.

Some people purposely hurt other people and for what? Maybe to get a laugh because they made someone cry. Maybe to feel better about themselves because they’re insecure? Or maybe to feel like their day got instantly better because they ruined someone else’s.

Either way, it isn’t right. What could someone have done that was so bad that made you feel like you had the right to push them down?

Students are told to talk to counselors or take up the issue with an AP. They are taught to believe that there is help for them at school. However, in reality, many feel that there is no help for them from adults so they choose to remain silent. And there’s always the risk of making the situation worse by seeking help from an authority figure.

We have policies against bullying but they don’t do any good nor do they prevent it from happening. In the school building, many posters address grades, but only three posters in hallways talk about or even mention harassment and bullying. It makes me wonder just how serious is the situation to the school administration.

Sometimes people get bullied because of how much they weigh, the way their voice sounds, their style, or even because they have high grades.

What if someone is already having a bad day and you calling them ugly or trying to point out where you think they’re wrong in different ways just made it even worse. What if that person you hit and called names already gets that when they go home at night? What if that person you just spread rumours about was already contemplating suicide and you just helped them with their final decision? What if that person you’ve been making fun of behind their back has cancer or a disease?

There’s no going back after that. The list  of “what if’s” goes on and it may seem like these are rare ones to hear about in someone’s life and that it couldn’t be true but the sad reality is that it is some people’s reality.

When it’s too late some people might say “I didn’t know they had that kind of life” or just “I didn’t know.” Do you really need to know to justify your name calling, or rumor spreading, or overall bullying?

At the end of the day, there is no excuse.

​ ​Whether​ ​it’s​ ​a​ ​student,​ ​a​ ​friend,​ ​or​ ​even​ ​your​ ​own​ ​relative​ ​in​ ​the​ ​hall,​ ​it​ ​hurts​ ​to​ ​hear​ ​and

see​ ​they’re​ ​getting​ ​bullied.​ ​What​ ​hurts​ ​more​ ​is​ ​when​ ​all​ ​the​ ​people​ ​victim​ ​to​ ​bullying​ ​all​ ​say​ ​the

same​ ​thing,”​ ​I’m​ ​used​ ​to​ ​it.”​ ​No​ ​one​ ​should​ ​be​ ​used​ ​to​ ​it.​ ​

Every​ ​year​ ​there​ ​are​ ​about​ ​4,400​ ​deaths between​ ​the​ ​ages​ ​10-24 due to students committing suicide, ​according​ ​to​ the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.​ Those 4, 400 students are all a friend to someone. ​It isn’t​ ​funny​ ​when​ ​it​ ​happens​ ​to​ ​your​ ​friend​ ​so​ ​what​ ​difference​ ​does​ ​it​ ​make​ ​when​ ​it happens to somebody else’s?​

​No​ ​one​ ​should​ ​ever​ ​feel​ ​like​ ​there’s​ ​only​ ​one​ ​way​ ​to make​ ​it​ ​stop.​ ​It’s​ ​sad​ ​when​ ​someone​ ​thinks​ ​the​ ​only​ ​way​ ​they’ll​ ​find​ safety ​is​ ​if​ ​they’re​ ​laying down​ ​with​ ​the​ ​abbreviation​ ​of​ ​‘Rest​ ​In​ ​Peace’​ ​above​ ​their​ ​head.