15.1: How Can You Help Someone Stop Being Bullied? Animation Video
Transcript:
How Can You Help Someone Stop Being Bullied?
Bullying is always the fault of the bully, and never the person being bullied. If you witness bullying and do not try to help, however, you contribute to the bullying. Bullies will think their behavior is acceptable if people see it and do nothing to stop it. Some people may feel helpless when they see bullying, but there is almost always something you can do to help stop the bully. If someone is being bullied, you can use the following strategies to respond to and stop the bullying.
First, if you see someone bullying another person, do not participate or watch. Bullies often want an audience or approval for their bullying. Do not encourage their behavior by watching or cheering the bullying of another person. Instead, walk away. Get as many people as you can to walk away with you.
If you feel safe doing so, tell the bully to stop. Bullies often care a lot about being popular and powerful. If others speak up about their actions not being cool, it could stop their behavior altogether.
You can also ask the person being bullied how you can help. Maybe the person being bullied does not feel safe sitting alone in the cafeteria or on the school bus. Or, maybe the person is afraid to speak to an adult about the situation. You can offer to sit with the person or go with the person to speak to an adult.
Sometimes, the person being bullied begins to feel isolated, lonely, and afraid to go to school. If you see someone being bullied, make an effort to spend some time with that person. Ask how the person is feeling or talk about a shared class. This will not erase the consequences of being bullied, but it can help the other person to not feel so alone.
Another thing you can do is to help the person stay away from the bully. If there is no way to avoid the bully, you can at least accompany the person when contact with the bully is inevitable. Your presence may help to diffuse the situation.
Most importantly, tell a trusted adult if you or someone you know is being bullied. Teachers, principals, school nurses, and other adults can help stop bullying before it gets worse. This keeps you and other people safe. Most schools have rules against bullying and cyberbullying. Students who engage in this kind of behavior can be suspended or kicked off sports teams or other activities. These consequences may help stop a bully’s behavior.