Making Bullying in Schools Illegal
Jamey Rodemeyer and his “It Gets Better” Video
Lady Gaga, as the top grossing woman in the entertainment industry, is using her influence to drive the campaign for making bullying in schools illegal. An idea that is long overdue, Gaga’s efforts were amped up by the recent suicide of Jamey Rodemeyer, a young gay boy involved in the “It Gets Better” movement aimed at making the plight of bullied youth known. Lady Gaga has the attention of President Obama and now it rests on his lap to take her pleas and the concerns of Little Monster’s throughout the nation to capital hill.
The matter of bullying in schools is close and personal to Lady Gaga, a victim herself of torment in high school that she states “still hurts today”. When bullying occurs, students live in a climate of fear, intimidation, self-loathing and anger. Jamey Rodemeyer had told his parents and peers that the bullying did not affect him like it used to and that the “it gets better” campaign had helped him. However, the deep seeded depression that resulted of the taunting and abuse he received because of his homosexuality did not leave him. While he left no note, all that knew him were certain his death can be directly attributed to the bullying at school.
Serious, violent crime is reported to take place in 17% of all urban schools, 8% of rural schools and 5% of town schools, according to a study by the National Center for Education Statistics. Making bullying a hate crime is the goal of Lady Gaga and many others that feel the violent crime statistics would sky-rocket in schools if bullying were added to the list. Because children have the shelter of an inattentive school administration and the support of peer groups is no reason to allow a hate crime to take place. Criminalizing bullying would power to the schools and to the parents who feel just as helpless as their children sent into the gladiator pit every day they enter their school.
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