Verbal bullying – Words are powerful
Words are powerful. They can cheer or they can hurt. They can make a person laugh or reduce them to tears. Verbal intimidation can tax a self-confident individual and leave him helpless in his effort to appear unaffected.
In any public or parochial school across the United States, there are thousands of students who are verbal bullies. His methods of hurting others include racial comments, sexual comments, name calling, and insults. It is so common in schools that not much is being done about it. This particular form of abuse can escalate to more damaging methods like physical abuse.
As a child, can you remember a time when some verbal bullies called you a nasty, hurtful name? Do you remember how you felt? Bullies embarrassing you in front of your friends? These acts of verbal bullying are byproducts of a home environment where words are used to humiliate and hurt. Kids don’t suddenly decide to use a racial slur. It has to originate somewhere. Studies indicate that it originates in the home.
In a high school in New York City, there is a population of 900 students who speak 35 different languages. Consider the effects of insults on these students who emigrate from other countries in search of a quality education, only to be subjected to verbal bullying and verbal intimidation by their peers. These students arrive at a school unaware of the culture that exists in the school itself. It’s a culture full of children who are abused at home, angry at the world, left to fend for themselves because both parents work, and are considered children living with one parent, grandparent, or guardian. They are hell-bent on hurting others to feel more powerful and in control, because school is the only place they can be in control.
Verbal bullying is often done without thinking. The words just gush out without regard to the person being victimized. Verbal harassment and verbal intimidation can be more devastating than physical abuse in that they strike at the heart of an individual’s innermost feelings for himself. It leaves lasting scars that, in some cases, may never heal.
Verbal bullying is an insidious and disgusting display of ignorance on the part of those who use it. While studies show that verbal bullying can be inflicted by those who suffer from low self-esteem, it is quite difficult to tolerate this verbal bullying, although it seems that the abuser may have self-confidence issues of their own.
Think about it for a moment. Yelled at a driver who cut you off unexpectedly? Did you use verbal epitaphs? Is this the same as verbal bullying? Here’s another question: Was your son in the car at the time? Did he or she witness this display of verbal abuse? The point to note is that verbal abuse begins in the home. Whether consciously or not, children learn what they hear and see. They equate this as the norm, rather than the exception. Perhaps it’s time to re-examine why kids use verbal bullying and how it can be dispelled.