Troy School Fights Bullying, Promotes Peace

TROY (WWJ) - One local school is fighting back against bullying by promoting peace, tolerance and acceptance.

Troy's Larson Middle School  is holding an anti-bullying assembly Tuesday as part of a school-wide campaign to stop bullying.  

Nancy Lining is a 7th Grade Social Studies Teacher at the school and one of the organizers of the anti-bullying efforts.

"This whole week has been called peace week, peace in and dissin' out week," Lining said.

Lately, the problem of bullying and cyber bullying  has been growing in recent years, because it is easy for kids to target their victims through texting, Facebook and other social media.

Lining said students who are being bullied can put a stop to it, and they should not be afraid or embarrassed to ask a teacher for help.

"If this is happening to you, you need to talk to somebody. There are people out there who are caring," Lining said. "We have signs out in our hallways in front of our classrooms that we are teachers who care if you are getting bullied, but we need you to talk to us. We encourage them to email us, to leave notes on our desk."

Lining said parents are key in helping to promote acceptance and tolerance in children.

"Seeing someone even, um, on the street with a mohawk and ear piercings, you know, when your child says 'Oh, he's a freak.' And I'm constantly telling my kids, and I know others are too, that you can't judge a book by its cover. That could be the best kid you would ever know but because he's different than you, it's not ok to make fun," Lining said.

Several similar efforts have been held at other schools in the region, such as Bloomfield Hills. Federal law enforcement officials held anti-bullying forums in Ann Arbor and Dearborn, and in a nation-wide effort, some students even participated in a 'Day of Silence' to show how victims are silenced by harassment.