We were fortunate to have Dr. Walter Roberts join us to speak at January 20th’s Women Leading Change event. 140 people, including educators, mental health professionals, parents, and friends joined at the Radisson Hotel’s Great Hall to talk about bullying in our schools. So, what’s the next step? Dr. Roberts asked us to share the following comments and additional information with our guests.
Bullying: Starting the Conversation
Taking the Next Step
Please accept my sincere appreciation for the hospitality shown to Laurie and me by the Duluth-Superior community at the January 20th presentation, Bullying: Starting the Conversation. Your willingness to trek to the event during one of the coldest nights of the year is nothing but testament both to your resolve to start a realistic conversation about the negative impacts of bullying and intimidation, and to take those next steps toward action.
So, what do we do now? In addition to moving forward on the ten recommendations covered at the presentation, I would encourage all who attended to connect in the immediate future and take advantage of the momentum generated in the room. A community task force is a great way to make the issue a permanent focus and you have two great groups already in place to make that happen—Women Leading Change and Men as Peacemakers. I urge you to connect with these two organizations and get involved.
It is also essential to speak out publicly in opposition to those behaviors that we know are unacceptable. One of the reasons we have the problem of unchallenged intimidation is that too many of us fail to call on those who engage in bullying to stop. We have to be willing to call it when we see it and do so in such a way that encourages others to join us in the effort. Write letters to the editor. Address governmental leaders—school boards, city councils, members of the legislature—ask them to be a part of the solution.
Making communities safe for all ages is a quality of life issue. It begins in our homes and spirals outward. We have to start those spirals of caring and feed them with our creative energies.
Again, thank you for your wonderful generosity. Let’s keep moving forward to prevent and end the terrible emotional and physical damage that bullying, intimidation, and violence cause within our society. I’ll continue doing my part, and I look forward to hearing about the successes that the Duluth-Superior region have in the days, weeks, and months to come.
Best wishes!
Walter Roberts, Jr.
Professor of Counselor Education
Minnesota State University, Mankato
Author of Bullying from Both Sides and Working with Parents of Bullies and Victims
10 Options to Address Bullying in Our Communities
Walter Roberts, Jr.
Professor of Counselor Education
Minnesota State University, Mankato
1. Refuse to continue the historical paradigms as to how we respond to bullying and intimidation among children and adolescents.
2. Accept that ignoring the problem will not solve it. It will not go away. The evidence is clear that the problem will only get worse if ignored.
3. Make a personal commitment to refuse to tolerate intimidating behaviors in all community settings. This is not just a “school problem.” It is a community issue. It starts in the home and spills over into any setting—public, private, and parochial—where young people gather.
4. Intervene on behalf of those who are targeted for victimization. They need you. It does make a difference that, when, and how adults get involved in stopping the bully-victim relationship. This is not a job for “someone else” to solve.
5. Challenge those who do not believe that bullying is an issue worthy of their time or concern. You/We cannot be silent anymore. Silence supports the status quo. Is the status quo acceptable in our community?
6. Ask tough questions within the community: What are we really doing to address this problem? Be persistent in pursuit of an answer.
7. Volunteer with youth. A “resource” is not always money. Active supervision by adults is one of the most effective tools to reduce bullying.
8. Community organizations can make bullying prevention curricula and resources for schools one of their funding priorities. Ask what your schools need, then help find ways to obtain it.
9. Engage the PTBs—the Powers That Be. Call/Contact relevant office holders—in the legislature, on school boards, at the local government level—and ask them what they are specifically going to do/are doing to help stop bullying in our schools and communities. Don’t accept excuses. Don’t accept generalities. Don’t accept platitudes. Seek commitments!
10. Do not back down in your resolve to address the problem! Remember, systems wait for “problems” and “problem people” to “just go away.”
