It was in my junior year of high school, I was terrified everyday to walk home from school because of the bully. You see, Jerry F. was from another school in the area and their school got let out earlier than mine. So there was Jerry, always waiting off school property, to bully me and anyone else he could control. I was not a little guy at that time in my life. I was 6’2” and 200 lbs but I didn’t like fighting and altercations. For that reason, I always waited till he left or I would run home using the back roads.
Now I have been bullied my whole life because I was popular, but this one day stands apart when I think of all the times I was scared and upset. I was walking home down the same roads I usually take when all of a sudden I see the bystanders with Jerry point out to him that I was walking across the road. Jerry immediately ran across the road and with no hesitation he punched me right in the mouth. I fell to the ground in a daze.
When I got up from the ground, I looked across the road to see the bystanders laughing at me and giving Jerry a high five for hurting me.
The sad part that I remember even after all these years is the bystanders all supported Jerry because they didn’t want to be the next victim. They gave him the attention and oxygen he needed to feel powerful. You see, the bystanders empowered the bully to feel that what he was doing was okay.
If only one bystander had spoken up to a teacher when they returned to school, I may not have been bullied and terrorized for the next 2 years.
I felt that speaking up would have made things worse. Could they really do anything about this bully who was from another school?
So I stayed complacent and it wasn’t until Jerry moved that I felt safe again.
Author: Jim Jordan, from Report Bullying
