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Banishing Bullying on the Internet
October 22, 2014
— bullying, education, internet, October, victim
Bully
Our cyber world includes unhealthy relationships of all kinds. I am pleased to be free of bullying and the kind of scary stalking that happens on-line. I have many public profiles and none has been hacked or used to attack me. I have, however, been witness to some questionable bullying in public which I remember and avoid forever after. October is Anti Bullying Month, and as people come forward to discuss this subject more openly in public it is obvious we need more than just a month to remedy this crisis. The relative anonymity, and/or authenticity of on-line relationships is bringing out the very worst in some people’s personalities. I don’t believe many of these wimpy cyber bullies and stalkers who insult and badger others would have the nerve to be so bold in person. Still, the offensive transactions often take place in public streams. What can those of us who are observers of this behavior do to stop it in our on-line relationships?
- Speak up in support of the victim when appropriate
- Shun, ban, block and ignore bullies who spread vitriol
- Check your own on-line statements for possible offensive mistakes in communication
- Report real harassment and threats to law enforcement
I think it would be so fine if we had an internet Officer White, who would take the bullies to internet detention to school them. His advise is as good for the trolls and the stalkers of profiles and blogs as it is for elementary students. Officer White breaks it down so we all see that we have a responsibility:
The fact that education is so widely affected by this horrible trend is a national disgrace. The tolerance for the acts or threats that terrorize individuals and groups at school must end. Education has little chance to flourish in such a toxic environment. Adults need to set good examples in our own behavior and commitments as well as guide young people to treat each other in our institutions of learning with civil respect. Power should not be handed over to bullies in society. There can be no happy results to that strategy. The victim, however, is an archetype all of us will play at some time during our lives. All of us have the experience of abuse of power on both ends, even if it was only in childhood with siblings. We take advantage of others, and also allow others to take advantage of us. It is part of learning how to survive to adulthood. Those of us who have made it to adulthood owe it to the young people to set a safe and sane example on the internet. How do you stay safe, Gentle Reader? Have you experienced bullying as a result of your on-line presence?
comments
Thanks very much Catherine
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I spent three years homeless. During that time I was cyber bullied and terrorized by someone and pushed to the brink of suicide. Other homeless across the US came forward with similar stories about this man. The sad part is this person doing the cyber bullying is a nationally known homeless advocate.
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Greg Staffa
October 24, 2014
That is a very sad state of affairs. I am glad you made it through the experience. Has it stopped with the others or is he still doing it?
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He is still doing it although most of us have gone silent out of fear. Been trying to find a reporter to do a story because we have collected over 100 pages of documents. But we haven’t been able to find a reporter yet. He basically bullies homeless who don’t support him into silence.
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Greg Staffa
October 24, 2014
A blogger will do …that is incredible. You need to get this information to the public..this is not right.
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I find bullying on the net appalling. What annoys me most is though is that some of the most outspoken ‘anti-bullies’ are really just radical believers in one or other cause. And, they themselves bully anyone who doesn’t support their cause. As for example the trolls hunting judy finnagan’s daughter because Judy spoke out about the right of a convicted rapist to return to work.
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London-Unattached.com
October 25, 2014
Thats what happened to us. Some homeless had their image used without our permission to promote this National Known Homeless advocates charity he runs by himself. So we complained. That trigged several years of cyber bullying and harassment. He was fired from a homeless charity in Calif and now works for the Rescue Mission in NY (another homeless charity) tried to find reporters to tell the story worry that bloggers will just be harassed and bullied by him. Brianna Karp a former homeless woman in California wrote a book about her homeless experiences and her encounter with this man although she never names him. He encouraged his 20,000 twitter followers to trash her book. Write negative reviews even if they had not read it.
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Greg Staffa
October 25, 2014
Greg, this is such a sad and, as I am starting to understand, kind of common scenario. These cyber bullies seem to have no other reality that matters to them. Shame on the shelters that hire someone who abuses the clients like this. I think it is extra dispicable to harass those who are already having real problems.
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I know what you mean Fiona, they are advocates of free speech…if that speech agrees with their opinions.
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I am with you Pam. I have posted about this too…… and bullying of children, young adults, and adults is unacceptable I find that those who commit acts of bullying are often people with serious problems with either violence or their own self-worth.
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