BULLYING: STATES TRY TO REIN IN UGLY BEHAVIOR

Volume 29, Issue 529                                                        December 8, 2008

Lamar Baily

In February of this year, a California teen, Lawrence King, was shot two times in the head by a classmate in a school computer lab; he died a few days later. The killing followed weeks of harassment after King told classmates he was gay.

Bullies have verbally and physically harassed other kids since time immemorial. But these days, harassment too often turns deadly. Since 1979, there have been more than 30 fatal shootings at schools, many of which later turned out to be connected to bullying. Legislators have passed laws to curb the behavior, but critics are skeptical, saying bullying can't be defined, much less controlled by laws.

The definitions of bullying vary, but it generally includes verbal and physical abuse or ostracizing someone over a period of time.  It's estimated that up to 25 percent of U.S. students are bullied regularly; another 15 percent to 20 percent of kids report that they harass others with some frequency. 

Children who are bullies are more likely to get into fights, vandalize property, be truant and drop out of school, according to Stop Bullying Now, a part of the federal Health Resources and Services Administration.

There also are consequences for the victims. Every day about 160,000 students skip school because they’re afraid of tormentors.  And bullying is reported to be a significant reason students carry weapons to school.

“Both bullies and victims are at high risk of suffering from an array of very serious health, safety and educational risks,” says Dr. Jorge Srabstein, medical director of the Clinic for Health Problems Related to Bullying at the Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, D.C.

Bullying can be a first step down the road to serious violence, and Srabstein is convinced that the behavior can be forestalled. “Bullying prevention is a matter of urgent public policy, as this form of abuse is at the crossroads of very critical public health, safety and educational hazards,” he said. Because persecutors often come from families that have their own internal problems with conflict and violence, researchers such as Srabstein urge educators and policymakers to provide help for families as well as school-based programs for students.

State Actions
So far, 39 states have enacted laws aimed at reducing harassment, intimidation and bullying at school.

This year Florida Representative Nicholas “Nick” Thompson sponsored the Jeffrey Johnston Stand Up for All Students Act. Named for a teenager who killed himself in 2005 after being bullied, the law is considered one of the most comprehensive anti-persecution measures in the nation.

The law (HB 669) prohibits bullying or harassment, including cyber-bullying, of any public K-12 student or employee. By December 2008, each Florida school district must have in place an anti-bullying and harassment policy. School districts, students, parents, teachers, administrators and local law enforcement were to have been involved in developing those policies. School districts must report all instances of bullying or harassment to the Florida Department of Education, as well as notify the parents of the bully and the parents of the victim.

“Kids these days cannot get away from bullying because of cell phones, text messages and computers. They feel there is no hope,” said Thompson. He adds that the measures helps ensure that “the lines of communication are open. We want parents to know what is happening in schools.”

In Utah, Representative Carol Spackman-Moss spearheaded a bipartisan campaign to pass an anti-harassment law. A high school teacher for 33 years, she believes that today's bullies are more aggressive than they were in the past. “I have seen the first-hand effects of bullying,” said Spackman-Moss, noting that one of her relatives was tormented to the point of dropping out of high school.

The law strikes a balance between state and local control by requiring that each school board enact an anti-bullying policy that contains specific elements, such as definitions of bullying and hazing, a description of the action that may be taken, and consequences or penalties that may be imposed for engaging in prohibited bullying, hazing or retaliation.  But the school boards also have the freedom to add other elements. “It’s best to have local schools deal with bullying,” she said.

Spackman-Moss acknowledges anti-bullying policies are controversial, adding that the policies probably will need to be fine-tuned. But she’s proud of the effort in Utah. “This kind of bipartisan legislation needs to happen more. This is what citizens want,” she said. “We have to make schools a safe environment for kids. If kids do not feel safe, they cannot learn.”

There are critics, however, who question anti-bulling laws on philosophical grounds. Ronald Collins, a scholar at the nonprofit, nonadvocacy First Amendment Center in Washington, D.C., argues that anti-bulling laws infringe on free speech.  Collins says state laws should define bullying precisely and be very narrow in what they cover. The more laws define bullying as explicit threats of violence or coercion into performing certain acts, the more likely they are to be successful, he says. “It is not enough to say bullying is 'bad,' so let’s pass a law,” he said.