Relationships - Bullying
What is bullying?
Bullying is when someone or a group of people tries to hurt or control another person. This could be by hitting, kicking, pushing or shoving, by making someone do something they don’t want to do, using mean words or threats, calling someone names, saying bad things about them behind their back. It could also mean leaving them out of groups or activities or by making them feel unimportant.
What do I do if I’m being bullied?
- It is not your fault
- Bullying is about other people wanting to have control and power over you.
- Bullies want you to feel badly about yourself – don’t give them that power
What can you do?
Here are some things you can do if you're being bullied:
- Don’t keep the bullying to yourself.Tell a parent, a teacher, your sports coach, any adult you can trust.
- If they don’t listen or don’t help you, find another adult who will.
- Try not to react to the bullying. The bully is just looking for a reaction from you.
- You can try just ignoring them.
- Join a club or a group.
- Stay with other people – don’t let yourself be alone
What can I do if I see someone being bullied?
- Refuse to join in.
- Don’t just sit and watch or walk away. The bully gets part of their power from having an audience. Don’t be part of giving them that power.
- Be a friend. The person who is being bullied really needs a friend – it could be you.
- Make sure the person who is being bullied tells someone. You could offer to go with them.
- Walk away and take the person who is being bullied with you. Ignore the bully.
What if I am the bully?
Hurting other people doesn’t make you big or strong or cooler than anyone else. If you like being a leader, think about other ways you can make a difference in your school, club or community
Text bullying
Your cell phone is a great way of keeping in touch with friends and family – you probably text people to tell them what you’re doing, to make arrangements to meet up, or just to chat. Sometimes though, people can send texts that are mean, rude or threatening. This is called text bullying and it is not okay.
If you’re sending bullying texts you need to know that you can be traced. Everything you send from your phone can be traced back to you. You can receive a warning message from the mobile phone company, you can be totally cut off their network and, if you’ve threatened to get or hurt someone, the police can become involved.
If you are getting bullying texts ...
There are some things you can do:
- Don’t reply to the text or contact the number the text has come from
- Keep a list of the date and times you received at least four bullying texts. To show that the texts are not wanted, this call list can only start from when you stopped replying.
- Call your cell phone company
If you’re with Vodafone free text the word “bully” to 4001 to prompt an investigation.
Don’t reply to the text or contact the number the text has come from. Keep a list of the date and times you received at least four bullying texts. To show that the texts are not wanted, this call list can only start from when you stopped replying. - For Telecom phones, call 0800 809 806 Monday to Friday between 9am and 4pm.
- If you’re with Telstra, phone 0800 299 500.
- If you’re at school with the person who’s sending the texts, talk with a teacher or the guidance counsellor.
It is against the law to send texts threatening to someone physically. If you’re receiving texts like this you should show them to the police who can help you make a formal complaint
For more help with this check out the following sites
You can also email queries@netsafe.org.nz or msn them at net_safe@hotmail.com
or you can phone them on 0508 638 723.
