‘bully for you!’

Bullying has become has become the most talked about subject, worldwide, over the last couple of weeks as a result of the recent youtube posting of a bully being slammed onto his back in a Sydney school playground.  Bullying is real and it is not just confined to schools; we actually have an 'Anti-bullying' policy in the Police Force which indicates this sort of thing can happen in any environment.  Most parents will not be aware if their child is a bully or is being bullied.  Children are far less likely to report it because they don't know whether they should or shouldn't so the problem can go undetected for many years and accumulate irrepairable psychological damage.  I can relate to a couple of incidents in my younger days as a bully victim.

In primary school, I was getting bullied by one particular boy and I thought, one day, I would go straight to the Principal and report him.  The Principal told me to call that bully to his office (which was stupid but I did it anyway)  and he got severely caned.  As he came out he looked like he was going to attack me but instead he shook my hand.  Maybe, he thought he deserved it.

Another time, I was being bullied by several persons which started off with a push and a shove in the playground.  Every day at lunch time, walking in formation, they would gather around and try to provoke me.  One day, enough was enough, and I unleashed myself onto them all.  They never bothered me again, it was over!  That was they way I handled those situations because that is all I knew back then.  Now we have more informed solutions to choose from.

Even if the parents become aware of their children being bullied, what are they to do?  From a martial arts point of view, the solutions have to be based on both oral and physical skills they attain from their training; Instructors have a lot of influence over their students so it makes sense for them to be facilitators of this programme.  In other words, a DIY kit (do it yourself).  Remember, parents are not going to be around for their kids especially when they grow up; they need to learn to handle bullies from an early age because bullying can continue in the adult years in any environment.
GA