This a difficult debate to have. On one hand, bullying is (needless to say) a terrible thing that is plaguing our youth. Everyone wants it stopped, and many of us are trying to figure out exactly how that can be done. One of the ways it could possibly be stopped is by getting the law involved, but this is very tricky.
Our First Amendment rights do include some rules and regulations. For example, it is illegal to verbally and sincerely threaten another person. This is not protected speech because it causes another person to fear imminent danger. Someone can be threatened “in jest”, however, which is where it gets complicated. Many people can say they were “just kidding.”
Many bullies do make sincere threats of violence, and that is already illegal. However, bullies do not have to make threats in order to torture their victims. All it takes are some demeaning, annoying, or hurtful words to drive their victim to fear, hopelessness and ultimately depression. But can we make this behavior illegal without violating the First Amendment? It’s unlikely. Bothering, annoying, and hurting feelings are all protected speech. Trying to make them unprotected is a long shot, and rightfully so. Our freedom of expression is one of the greatest joys of living the United States. And although it can get ugly at times, we can take solace in the notion that our liberties are not at stake.
The ugliness that comes with our free expression includes that cruel and relentless bullying that we cannot stand. It’s hurting our children and making schools scary places to be.
It is both feasible and sensible to combat bullying in ways that do not involve Federal law, and we see people doing it every single day…
Schools are defiantly taking it on with intensive anti-bullying programs, added guidance, motivational speakers, and extracurricular activities. That is just touching the surface of what steps are being taken by our educational institutions, but many schools still need help. There is only so much they can do with limited time, resources and finances, and that is why HIBster provides such a huge advantage. It takes the process of detecting, evaluating, and addressing bullying incidents and streamlines it in one conformed system.
Online communities like HIBhub provide a safe place for children and teens to go when they are feeling beaten down by bullying and need some help or encouragement.
The HIBster anti-bullying software provides schools with a way to identify bullies, address repeat events, and prevent future incidents.
Organizations such as StopBullying.gov and Stop Bullying Now dedicate their entire lives to ending the epidemic.
More and more research is constantly being conducted on the psychology of bullying, leading to promising behavioral solutions.
So although we cannot amend our Constitution in order to fight bullying, we are certainly pushing in other incredible ways. Do not be discouraged!