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Mostly Cloudy Pity the bullies . . . but throw them out of school
Anyone who’s read “Lord of the Flies” knows the great capacity children have for savagery. Still, the recent suicide of a 15-year-old high school girl, following months of brutal bullying, shocks us — hopefully into action.
The story is sad but not unusual. Bullying has become endemic to American schools.
This particular girl entered a Massachusetts public high school in September after moving to the U.S. from Ireland. Almost immediately, the physical and mental abuse began. Some fellow students say it was because she was pretty. Others say she broke up with a popular boy after a brief relationship. But the real reason is always the same: Some teens find pleasure and empowerment in torturing other kids.
She became “it” and the torment never stopped. In the way such things happen, the assaults escalated until the day Phoebe Prince couldn’t take it anymore. That day, she had received threatening e-mails and humiliating messages on Facebook, her books had been torn up, and while she was walking home from school, someone threw a drink at her. She hanged herself that night.
No one can say for sure that the bullying caused the suicide, but the circumstantial evidence is compelling. At an age when peer acceptance, self-esteem and confidence are what make life worth living, Phoebe was subjected to derision, physical assault and verbal attacks.
Some people close to the case say that school officials knew about the problem and did too little. Others ask what could have been done to save the girl.
Years ago, the common wisdom was that bullies were bullies and the only way to stop them was to fight back. Many dads sent their bloodied kids out to fight the neighborhood bully as a way of solving the problem. But we’ve learned a lot in recent years about the dynamics of human behavior, even the mysterious world of teenagers. Fighting back doesn’t work.
In the case of Phoebe Prince, the local district attorney has decided to prosecute those who allegedly drove the girl to take her own life. Nine teenagers have been indicted on charges ranging from criminal harassment to stalking to statutory rape.
