Teen
CuttheBull:
STRATEGIES TO HELP KIDS WITH DISABILITIES STAND UP TO BULLIES At least one in four the AMC series Breaking Bad. Like his American children will character, Mitte has cerebral palsy. A former patient of Shriners Hospitals for experience bullying Children(R), Mitte has partnered with at some point during the organization to promote its 2017 their school years #CutTheBull anti-bullying campaign. and children with “I was harassed, knocked down and disabilities are twice even had my hand broken,” he recalls. as likely to be bullied, “Now I have an opportunity to give a according to the voice to people with disabilities and promote acceptance.” National Center for Education. Understanding Bullying
E
ven those who are bound for celebrity status as award-winning actors can experience bullying. “Growing up, my disability made me a target for bullies,” says RJ Mitte, who portrayed Walter “Flynn” White Jr. on
Twenty-eight percent of children in grades 6-12 say they’ve been bullied, and 70 percent of young people say they’ve witnessed someone being bullied at their school, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). While cyberbullying grabs headlines, it’s actually the
least common type of bullying; verbal and social attacks are the most common. Bullies tend to target children who are perceived as different, which is why children with disabilities are at greater risk of being bullied. Physical vulnerability, appearance and social or emotional difficulties, can make children with disabilities easier targets for bullies. According to DHHS, “persistent bullying can lead to or worsen feelings of isolation, rejection, exclusion and despair, as well as depression and anxiety ...”
Cutting the Bull Standing up to bullies is the best way to stop bullying, experts agree, whether the person who stands up is the victim or a bystander. In fact, when a witness to bullying speaks out, the bullying stops within 10 seconds, 57 percent of the time, the DHHS reports. Through the #CutTheBull
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FLUENTIAL NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2017