Dear Future President,

Bullying is an extensive issue in the United States. It causes many health problems, educational problems and social problems. Some results of bullying could include harmful cases for individuals and struggles in their future. Bullying in general needs to come to an end whether it's physical, verbal, or online (a.k.a. cyberbullying). There are many effects for both the victim and bully that are both negative and unfortunately positive. Some effects include the increase in depression, anxiety and risk of suicide.

Over 3.2 million students are victims of bullying each year. (dosomething.org) Bullying can be a huge factor leading to or the increasing of depression and anxiety. Depression can be very serious and lead to suicide or other extreme cases. Many people who have experienced bullying have also attempted or committed suicide. Each year 42,773 Americans die by suicide. (afsp.org) Anxiety can also be a result of bullying, along with lowering one’s self-esteem and confidence. Some may have social anxiety, where it makes one have a tough time in situations with meeting new people or speaking in class. These results could also lead to future or educational problems. A way to help people with any type of anxiety or depression could be having more clubs in the school community open for anyone who wants to talk about their experiences or listen to experiences involving bullying and harassing in school or out of school.

Bullying tends to take place online or in schools. This causes learning to be difficult for kids who are victims of bullies. Near 160,000 students decide not to go to school to avoid being bullied or harassed. If an individual in high school starts skipping school more often, their grades drop and they will be less likely to graduate high school. Another result could cause them to be more aggressive and have more rage, which could lead to further anger issues. An example of one experiencing anger issues due to bullying is starting fights (physical and verbal) more often in and out of school which could get them in trouble with the law.

There are poor effects for both the bully and the victim in a situation of bullying. Kids and teens tend to get into fights, vandalize property and can even consume alcohol or abuse drugs in their younger ages. Unfortunately, bullies can find pleasure out of hurting people while it is verbal or physical. This could lead into future problems for the bully. Some long-term effects are an increasing risk of being abusive towards a future loved one as an adult. Studies show that in 12 out of 15 school shooting cases from the 1990’s, the shooters had a history of being bullied. (stopbullying.gov) This shows that bullying creates negative short term, and long term effects for both the bully and victim.

I had a friend and family member who went through bullying. My friend had been dealing with many personal issues involving depression and anxiety. A portion of his depression and anxiety was caused by bullying. He had gone through many therapists which didn’t seem to help as much as it should have. He felt that nobody else was going through what he did. Eventually his depression took over and he committed suicide. No human being should experience what he did, or what his family and friends went through once he committed suicide. My sister has also dealt with bullying ever since she was in third grade and it has affected her very negatively. She has been struggling with depression since she was a sophomore in high school (she is currently a senior in high school). Seeing my older sister who I have looked up to for 16 years, in this much pain is heartbreaking. Therapists may help with these situations but they won’t be our helping hand forever. We need a new system in school to help kids with depression and anxiety, an example is a group for students who have experienced bullying or have even bullied someone so they can talk about how they feel and know they are not alone.

We need to take these problems into action and create a solution to decrease the amount of bullying that occurs around the U.S. Teachers should be required to ask how their students are feeling so they are aware of what is going on in their life. We also need to find a solution for the victims who are dealing with health, educational or social problems that have been affected by their experience of being bullied.

Sincerely,

Eva

Grade 10 Central High School