Anti Bullying Policy and Engagement

By Betsey M. & Adam T.

“Fag”

“Dyke”“Fatty”

“Redskin”

“Brace face”

“Cripple”

“Why don’t you just got home and kill yourself the world would be better off!”

“Poor people smell!”“Look it’s a elf he/she is so short!”

“Don’t declare a Jihad now!”

“Butch bitch”

“your so fat….”

“Hey its deaf boy!”

“Guys don’t cheerlead they join the football team faggot!”

“Women can’t wrestle!”

“We can’t help it all Asians look alike.”

The Startling Truth nationally

• Every day 160,000 students in America skip school due to fear of a bully

• 75% of all students report hearing daily negative put downs directed of minority and LBGT students

• 84.3% LBGT students report not having 1 adult in the school to report bullying/harassment

• This school year 15 students have died by suicide due to bullycide

Local level

• In MI 8 families have directly lost a child to bullycides after repeated reports to the school

• Vast majority of schools in MI do not have a bullying policy on the books to reference to for definition and universal response

• This allows for picking and choosing

What about Michigan

• Since 2001 a documented 8 students have been lost to bullycides

• Michigan has a definition of bullying but no policy in effect

• Michigan has a definition of cyber bullying but as we saw with AG Asst Andrew Shirvell on Chris Armstrong no policy for clear action is on the books to respond to the definition of cyber bullying.

History

• 2001: Non-profits work with legislators to draft anti-bullying legislation, Michigan School Board of Education creates Model Policy

• 2006: Policy is re-drafted• 2008: Dies in the Senate• 2009: Non-enumerated version is introduced• 2010: Congressional elections favor

Republicans

Current Issue• Non-enumerated vs. enumerated• According to Michigan State Board of Education (2001), bullying is:

“any gesture or written, verbal, graphic, or physical act (including electronically transmitted acts – i.e., cyberbullying, through the use of internet, cell phone, personal digital assistant (pda), computer, or wireless handheld device, currently in use or later developed and used by students) that is reasonably perceived as being dehumanizing, intimidating, hostile, humiliating, threatening, or otherwise likely to evoke fear of physical harm or emotional distress and may be motivated either by bias or prejudice based upon any actual or perceived characteristic, such as race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression; or a mental, physical, or sensory disability or impairment; or by any other distinguishing characteristic, or is based upon association with another person who has or is perceived to have any distinguishing characteristic.”

Implications: Government

• In response to a school board member attacking gay students, a broken arm on a 11 year old, a dozen bullycides, and AG case of MI in 2 months the President pushed action

• Title IX of Dept of Education requires anti bullying address for schools to receive any federal funding

Implications: Public Administration

• Effectiveness of non-enumerated version has shown to be comparable to no policy at all

• Unfunded mandate?• No requirement for community input

President Obama takes action

• In response to a school board member attacking gay students, a broken arm on a 11 year old, a dozen bullycides, and AG case of MI in 2 months the President pushed action

• Title IX of Dept of Education requires anti bullying address for schools to receive any federal funding

Make It Better so It Gets Better

Resources

• GLSEN- www.glsen.org reports every 2 years a National Climate School Report & Gay Straight Alliances

• Trevor Project- www.trevorproject.com National LBGT 24/7 crisis hotline 1-866-7488-7386

• PFLAG- http://pflagdetroit.org/ Parents and Friends of Lesbian and Gays Detroit Chapter

• MattsLaw - http://mattepling.webs.com/ Parents of Kevin Epling leading the MI charge for anti bullying legislation

• BullyPolice- http://www.bullypolice.org/ the national non profit tracking and advocating to reduce bullying