Last week the New York Post reported on the suicide of a 13-year-old Staten Island boy who had been relentlessly bullied at his Catholic school. Danny Fitzgerald’s parents posted his sad and touching letter on Facebook.It’s another example of why bullying is not good for children — or for anyone.
What’s more, the deleterious effects are no longer confined to the playground. They continue long after students close the schoolyard gate, several studies say. It turns out that not only do people being bullied suffer long-term emotional problems, but so do the bullies.
In the final analysis the victim suffers from the scars of bullying. The bully suffers from guilt of knowing how much pain he inflicted on others. You can’t turn back the clock but you can seek out the people that were bullied in a heartfelt way through social media venues and speak with them to ask for forgiveness. This is not easy, it’s hard. According to the research health problems arise because of guilt and bitterness from either being a bully or a victim. Bringing these two parties together later in life can make a difference in terms of their health and longevity. From a practical standpoint bullies need to held accountable at an early age and victims need to be strengthened to feel more capable and connected.
