Blog Posts by Subject: Bullying

"Most schools have no idea what to do," says Ross Ellis, founder of Stomp Out Bullying.

The Teen Central DigiCommunication Arts Projects and Workshop, in partnership with Yianni Stamas and Lights Camera Read @ Grand Central Library has been growing and developing since last fall. Aiming to provide a space for youth to engage in public service while highlighting their talents and efforts — in essence promote yourself by helping others, our anti-bullying digital project began in the spring and gained a life of its own. Several teens produced and are producing work around this issue, which is in some way close to us all.

  In case you need some inspiration this National Coming Out Day, check out It Gets Better: Coming Out, Overcoming Bullying, and Creating A Life Worth Living edited by Dan Savage and his partner Terry Miller. The book shares stories of coming out and thriving from LGBT notables from Gene Robinson to Suze Orman,  as well as everyday people. My favorite is Urvashi Vaid's essay "The only reason big changes happen is when people like you and me decide to fight for things to change, when we take action to make things different." Check it out!

Bullying is a horrible thing.  It sticks with you forever.  It poisons you.  But only if you let it.

We are all familiar with physical bullying: on the playground, after school, on the street. When we see it, we stop the bully from behaving in such a negative manner. Cyberbullying does not happen in the physical realm. Cyberbullying occurs “when a child, preteen or teen is tormented, threatened, harassed, humiliated, embarrassed or otherwise targeted by another child, preteen or teen using the Internet, interactive and digital technologies or mobile phones” (definition from WiredKids).

In the past three weeks, a tragic pattern has arisen. Four gay teenagers have committed suicide because of repeating bullying about their sexual orientation. Two of the victims were just thirteen years old. Although it seems that we are making progress each day with the gradual adoption of gay marriage, these recent events are a painful reminder that there is still so much more work to be done. It is important that we support each other during this time. Remember that the New York Public Library is a place where all people, of all races, religions, genders, ages, and sexual orientations are welcomed. If you or someone you know is dealing with LGBTQ bullying, here are some resources that 

It takes all kinds to make a world, and it takes all kinds to make a workplace.  Whether you make lattes at a coffee shop or work out of a corner office in a skyscraper, odds are, at least a few of your co-workers and superiors drive you crazy.

Now we all have heard horrific stories about sexual predators preying on our kids online. Facts like this make it scary for parents and teachers to feel comfortable with social networking sites. It's extremely important and our responsibility as adults to provide safety measures to kids when using the internet.