Image by Getty Images via @daylife
Recently it was reported that bullying caused Rebecca Black to leave public school and begin homeschooling with her mom.
Ms Black, as you may or may not know, is (in)famous for her song and video “Friday” which you can watch here.
This video has received over 200 million views. It shows 23 million on YouTube due to a technicality – It was originally listed under Ark Music, then it was taken down, than uploaded by Rebecca under her channel, which she has the rights to. Since she re-uploaded it, 23 million views have been recorded.
Since it has been re-uploaded on YouTube “dislikes” outnumber the “likes” by almost 2-to-1.
Ms Black has received a tremendous amount of criticism, and some staunch support for her video.
But, in her school, the relentless taunts, name calling and harassment lead to the decision to pull Rebecca out of school, she’s 14, and home school her.
Is it Right?
Should she have to leave school?
Is it right for Rebecca and her Mom to make the decision to leave school. Absolutely, they are taking responsibility for her welfare.
Rebecca is no stranger to bullying. As any ambitious person will tell you, to become successful, you must put yourself ‘out there.’ And when you do, criticism is one of the by-products.
You can’t please everyone. It’s one of the most important things to learn when you’re willing to express your art, idea, belief or view point.
Someone is always ready to put you down, criticize or otherwise destroy you.
Why Would They Bully Rebecca Black?
Why does one person bully another? There are multiple reasons that may fit.
1 – Jealousy/ Envy: some of the people criticizing or taunting Ms Black are simply jealous of her success and envy the attention she has received.
These people are probably aren’t very happy with their own life and don’t want to see others succeed as it acts as a reminder of their own failure.
Jealous people may have dreams as big as Ms Black, but for whatever reason, have succumbed to the fear she has managed to overcome.
Rather than face their fear, it’s better for these people to bully Rebecca Black out of school.
They would rather see Rebecca fail – or help to destroy her – than be reminded of their own inadequacy.
2 – Control: In reference to jealousy/envy, the bullying critics do not like to be reminded of their inadequacy by the success of others.
It’s important to such people to control those around them in order to preserve their delusions.
You can’t allow individuality, uniqueness or ambition to flourish, all must operate within the acceptable parameters of the community.
In order to control these people and deter them from taking actions which remind you of your own ineffectiveness, you must keep them in-check.
Shouldn’t There Be a Law Against Bullying?
There are more and more anti-bullying laws being passed all the time.
Focusing on passing laws is not the answer. We have hundreds of thousands of various laws in society, yet few are effective at actually stopping certain behaviors.
And besides, what is bullying?
Is it the same for every person?
How do you prove it?
No, it’s subjective to the individual target of such behavior.
While I am against bullying, I am also against anti-bullying laws for the above reasons.
And then what?
Send the kids in high school to prison? Besides, we can see bullying throughout society, many, many people are guilty of bullying.
If Not Anti-Bullying Laws, Then What?
Please remember, we already have laws against assault, battery and other encroaching behaviors.
Three Steps to Combat Bullying
I believe there are three things we can continue to do to combat bullying, and other unacceptable behavior.
1 – Peer Pressure to Prevent Bullying
When Rebecca Black was in the process of getting bullied out of school, other students surely observed the offensive behavior.
What did they do? Did they discourage the others from saying unkind words? Or did they quietly snicker and giggle in delight?
Imagine if a few respected students spoke up and advised the bullies to knock it off?
2 – Social Censure
This is on the rise. The attention bullying has been getting has been bringing greater awareness to the issue.
As more of society frowns on such behavior, bullying behavior should come under more pressure and result in less incidences.
3 – Public Praise
News and talk shows tend to highlight the bad in people, places and events. This continues to support others doing the same.
While the airwaves were filled with the criticisms of Rebecca Black’s video, it was much harder to hear the praise from such fans as Lady Gaga, the Jonas Brothers, Jay Leno and others.
When we can praise as well as we criticize, behaviors will improve.
Do I Have to Like Rebecca Black or Be Deemed a Bully?
No, the point of this article is not to say you must like Rebecca Black. It’s understood that many of you don’t like her, her music or the “Friday” video.
The point of this article is to highlight the negative effects of bullying and how it resulted in Rebecca Black leaving school.
And, to provide solutions to bullying that include “there ought to be a law.”
Laws won’t end jealously or the desire to control others, but the above three steps can do a lot to discourage or interrupt bullying and other unwelcome behaviors.
There are empowering and dis-empowering ways to express your opinion about someone or something.
The bullying behavior that caused Rebecca Black to leave school would be considered dis-empowering. When I hear or witness such behavior, I speak up.
I suggest you do the same.
