By Yohanna Amanda Putri
15 March, 2022
Drayke Hardman was a 12-year-old boy from Tooele County, Utah, who died tragically on February 10, 2022, after reportedly trying to commit suicide in response to bullying from a classmate. Earlier in the week, he returned home with a black eye and subsequently confessed to his sister that the injury was received during a violent argument with a classmate. Drayke then skipped basketball practice on Wednesday evening, at which point he attempted suicide, was discovered by his sisters and was sent to the hospital, then being pronounced dead in intensive care on Thursday morning (Sommerland, 2022).
As we can from the case above, bullying is still going on in this era. Bullying itself is a form of hostile action in which someone deliberately and consistently causes destruction or inconvenience to another person and this can come in the form of physical contact or words. It can be subtle, and many youngsters don't tell their parents or instructors because they are afraid of being shamed or reprimanded. Children may also feel that if they report being bullied, they will not be taken seriously. It is critical for parents, teachers, and other adults to be on the lookout for bullying actions at all times. Therefore, research has indicated several reasons why people continue to bully which then results in neverending cases of bullying, however, I believe that bullying can be stopped.
First, the anti-bullying program used by many schools has shown its effectiveness in reducing and stopping bullying cases. Bullying perpetration (random effects operational research = 1.309) and bullying assault (random effects operational research = 1.244) are considerably reduced using anti-bullying programs. These findings imply that anti-bullying programs lower school bullying perpetration by 19–20% and school bullying victimization by 15–16% (Gaffney, Ttofi, & Farrington, 2019). From this research, I figure that even though many people keep saying that bullying can’t be stopped but the anti-bullying program implemented in many schools has gradually stopped the bullying case.
Second, the social subjects in school help the students understand differences among others. Researchers have proven that programs like Roots of Empathy, which teach perspective-taking skills and empower children to counter cruelty with empathy and compassion, are beneficial in reducing aggression and improving pro-social behaviors. At a case study experiment including a social norms intervention in five different public middle schools in the state of New Jersey, bullying attitudes and actions, as well as peer perceptions, were analyzed (Grades 6 to 8). An anonymous online survey was used to gather data (baseline n = 2,589; postintervention n = 3,024). Students significantly misperceived peer norms regarding bullying perpetration and support for pro-bullying sentiments in the sample survey. The frequency and level of recollection of viewing poster messages representing genuine peer norms collected from the original survey data were related to the level of reductions across school locations. After a one-and-a-half-year intervention, the school with the highest message recall by kids had the highest rates of changes in bullying measures (from around 17 percent to 35 percent) (Perkins H, Craig, & Perkins J, 2011). I would say that if the teachers are more knowledgeable about the social lessons and know-how to empower students to be tolerant, I think bullying cases in school might be decreased or maybe will stop.
Third, if a specific class of persons has been harassed, civil rights and anti-discrimination laws defend their rights. A common state anti-bullying legislation mandates that a school report, document, and investigate bullying within a certain timeframe. It also required that the school take measures to put a stop to it. Bullying is punishable by law in several states. Some have a system in place for providing services such as counseling to both the victim and the bully. In Indonesia, bullying with verbal abuse is punishable under Article 80 (1) of UU No. 35 Th. 2014. "Everyone is prohibited from committing, allowing, committing, ordering to commit, or participating in the commission of violence against children," according to Article 76C of UU 35/2014, and "Everyone who violates the provisions as referred to in Article 76 C shall be sentenced to a maximum imprisonment of 3 (three) years 6 (six) months and/or a maximum fine of Rp.72,000,000.00 (seventy-two million rupiahs)". It should be underlined that the victim must be shown to have suffered psychological injury or suffering as a result of the verbal abuse. A declaration from someone who is an expert in their area, such as a psychologist or psychiatrist, is necessary to verify this psychological pain (Aulina, 2021). From my point of view, this is such a good thing that the laws we have will be cutting down the case of bullying since I believe that many people who have read about these laws will think twice if they want to bully others.
Bullying is a continuous problem in schools and many other areas beyond the school, and despite all of the awareness and campaigns over the last few years, it does not seem to be decreasing at all. On the contrary, there are still many ways that we can do to stop bullying even though it won’t 100% deface the case.
As a society and as families, we must pay attention to this issue and address it where it begins, which is at a young age on the school grounds, as well as at home or in the neighborhood. It is no longer acceptable, for whatever cause, to verbally or physically abuse another individual. As long as this is accepted, we will have to deal with bullying but as long as we still care for the bullied person, bullying can be stopped.
References:
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verbal terhadap anak yang mengakibatkan
korban bunuh
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Sommerland, J. (2022).
Drayke Hardman: Who was the 12-year-old who died by suicide after
being bullied at school?.
Independent. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/drayke-hardman-death-bullying-utah-b2015892.html
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