[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 174 (Friday, October 26, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1459]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        RAISING AWARENESS OF NATIONAL BULLYING PREVENTION MONTH

                                  _____
                                 

                        HON. SHEILA JACKSON LEE

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, October 26, 2018

  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise to commemorate National Bullying 
Prevention Month, a nationwide campaign held during the month of 
October to provide efforts in uniting communities to educate and raise 
awareness of bullying prevention.
  As a Co-Chair of the House Congressional Children's Caucus, member of 
the Mental Health Caucus, and Ranking Member of the Judiciary 
Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and 
Investigations, I have been saddened by one episode after another of 
children losing their lives and the lack of a coordinated response to 
incidents of bullying.
  In September of 2018, the Jackson Lee Anti-Bullying bill, H.R. 68, 
the Tiffany Joslyn Juvenile Accountability Block Grant Reauthorization 
Act was passed by the House.
  This legislation makes positive steps toward reform in juvenile 
justice and targets bullying and bullying prevention.
  This bill: targets bullying and bullying prevention; reauthorizes the 
award of grants to consider this problem in the amount of $30 million 
for one year; and, subjects grants to accountability measures: the 
Office of Inspector General in the Department of Justice (DOJ) must 
conduct annual audits of selected grant recipients and the Department 
of Justice must submit an annual certification to Congress and identify 
and report on duplicative grant awards.
  In October of 2015, I held an Anti-Bullying Town Hall Hearing in my 
district where over 40 witnesses--organizations, experts, bullying 
victims, and even bullies themselves--came out and shared their stories 
and experiences.
  National Bullying Prevention Month was founded by the PACER Center's 
National Bullying Prevention Center, this campaign has been recognized 
by school communities all over the United States, for the past 12 
years.
  Bullying is defined as the use of repetitive aggressive behavior such 
as force, intimidation, threat, or abuse, which depicts an imbalance of 
power, socially or physically.
  Studies show that at some point in a child's life, they experience 
bullying in some capacity, no matter what form.
  No single factor puts a child at risk of being bullied or bullying 
others.
  Time and time again, the root causes of bullying are racial, gender, 
sexual orientation, and religious discrimination.
  Justification for this matter shows that when children perceived as 
different are not in supportive environments, they are more prone to 
being bullied.
  Bullying based on religious differences tend to be the result of 
misinformation or spreading of negative perceptions on how an 
individual expresses their belief.
  American schools harbor approximately 2.1 million bullies and 2.7 
million of their victims.
  Derrin Bridges, a 13-year-old boy from Kansas City, Missouri, was 
bullied and held at gunpoint by a 17-year-old.
  Derrin who was noted to be on the autism spectrum, was severely 
mistreated; he was verbally assaulted with racial slurs, he was 
physically beaten, and money was stolen from him.
  I extend my deepest sympathies to Darren Bridges, his loving mother, 
Emily Bridges, and the rest of his family.
  This type of disheartening experience can affect a child for a 
lifetime.
  It is important to note that a significant increase in bullying rates 
is due to the prevalent use of technology among teens.
  The internet enables information to spread far and wide across the 
globe with the click of a button.
  It is estimated that in 2011, approximately 2.2 million students 
experienced cyberbullying.
  Cyberbullying is a form of bullying that happens over any digital 
device.
  This consists of sending and posting negative, presumptuous, or 
harmful content about someone else, as well as sharing private 
information about someone in aim to cause humiliation.
  Social media is an avenue that children and teens can easily access 
and use to engage in cyberbullying.
  Sites such as Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, and YouTube, 
are all platforms where the risk of cyberbullying is prevalent.
  With easy access to an individual's page, users gain the ability to 
search and post discreditable information anonymously about anyone.
  Bullying is now increasingly viewed as a contributor to the inflexed 
rates of suicide amongst youth.
  It can leave a harsh toll on those affected, causing lasting impacts 
on mental health, substance use and suicide.
  In 2016, Brandy Vela, an 18-year-old high school resident of my 
Congressional district, took her own life after experiencing relentless 
cyberbullying.
  Brandy was a beautiful young lady, who was friendly and all around 
well-liked by her schoolmates.
  Despite all the love given to her from friends and family, she took 
her own life due to the threats and messages she would continuously 
receive online, causing her to feel worthless.
  I cannot fathom the sorrow that the Vela family endured at that time.
  Brandy's memory lives on through her family and friends along with 
all those who work tirelessly to exterminate bullying .
  The American youth witnesses bullying at least once a day.
  Suicide rates solely among 10 to 14 year olds have grown more than so 
percent over the last three decades.
  It is important that we act promptly to prevent such instances from 
happening; many of the deadly cases of bullying arise when children are 
teased and tormented simply for being different.
  Our children are our future hence they must be our first priority.

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