Thursday, October 14, 2010

Bullying

This article is not the first time that I have ever heard of people being bullied because of the way they look, act, or their beliefs. It seems that the catalyst behind this bullying is nothing more than jealousy, and an unwillingness to accept others individuality.  However, there is a common trend within all stories of bullying: these “victims” are different. They all believe in, or look like, or act, in a way that is different than what is defined as "normal" by their peers. However, I am astounded by the fact that different has become a bad thing. Ralph Waldo Emerson once stated, "For nonconformity the world will whip you with its displeasure." Sadly this has become so true within teenage society. There is not a single person who has the exact  same thoughts, ideas, experiences, and beliefs as another. These differences create our individuality; be it the way we look, the things we value, the history of our family, or our sexual interests; yet society is teaching us that individuality is a bad thing. Conformity only leads to the loss of individuality, and without that individuality, who knows what the world could come to. These "bullies" are nothing more than the naive people who cannot comprehend that we live in a diverse world. A peaceful world will thrive off of people’s ability to gain new and different perspectives from those who do not necessarily correlate with their own ideas. No one can force another to support an idea that they don’t believe in. However, it is not until those same naive people learn to accept that these differences exist, that this "bullying" will stop.