If you see that someone is being bullied, you must not forget that it is rather difficult for both the bully and the victim to stop what is going on. Know that bullying is never acceptable no matter what the bully says to justify their actions. Bullying can only occur if onlookers approve of it or pretend that they do not see it. Standing up in defence of the victim is often the only way to stop bullying. This means that you can stop bullying! If you do not intervene now, you may be the next victim of the bully!
What should you do?
1. If you feel secure enough, you can step in yourself
and say that this is bullying and must stop immediately. Stepping in like this takes a lot of courage.
2. If you feel that you cannot stand up to the bully yourself, tell an adult about the bullying.
Telling someone about bullying is not snitching, but standing up for your rights and the rights of others! Everyone has the right to security and dignity both at and outside of school. A teacher, school psychologist or social pedagogue are the people who can help you the best. School psychologists and social pedagogues have been trained to solve cases of bullying.
3. If you see bullying online,
you can tell the web constable about it – it is their job to help children and young people stay safe on the Internet.
4. If possible, let the victim of bullying know that you do not think bullying is right and you want to help them.
Even a few words of encouragement or a friendly word may mean a lot to the victim. The hardest thing for a victim of bullying to bear is that everyone sees what is going on, but nobody does anything about it. This makes them feel that no one cares. The least you can do is let them know that you care.
5. If you are afraid to intervene on your own, look around to see if someone else could help you try and stop the bully.
The bully needs an audience and their approval. Once they lose their audience, there is no reason for them to carry on with the bullying.