Stop Bullying Now Campaign

My name is Katie Boyer and I am the current Miss Missouri Teen International. I will be representing Missouri in the upcoming Miss Teen International pageant being held this summer in Chicago, IL.

I would like to use my voice as Miss Missouri Teen to help stop bullying in our schools. No one deserves to be bullied and there is no good excuse for bullying. Join me and the National Stop Bullying Now Campaign - BE THE VOICE IN YOUR SCHOOL - TAKE A STAND, LEND A HAND, STOP BULLYING NOW!

I am very excited about competing for Miss Teen International and using my voice to speak out about something that is very near and dear to my heart, Youth and Teen Bullying. My goal during my reign is to bring awareness to bullying and as founder of Students against Bullying.

I have partnered with the Stop Bullying Now Campaign (www.stopbullyingnow.com) to further help them with their continued fight against bullying. I want to put a clear definition on what bullying consist of and what should be done to prevent bullying in our schools.

WWW.STOPBULLYINGNOW.COM

I want to thank you for visiting my website and please take a moment to sign my guestbook and offer any advice or to tell your story.

If you would like to schedule a bullying seminar in your school, please feel free to contact me for an appointment. I would love to come to your school and share my story with you and to help spread the word about...

TAKE A STAND
LEND A HAND
STOP BULLYING NOW

FOOD FOR THOUGHT:

WHEN YOU JUDGE ANOTHER, YOU DO NOT DEFINE THEM, YOU DEFINE YOURSELF.

By Wayne Dyer

HERE ARE MY TOP TEN COMMANDENTS ABOUT BULLYING:

#1 WHAT IS BULLYING?

          - Spreading rumors about others (emotional bullying)

          - Excluding or ignoring others in a mean way

          - Calling people bad names, taunting, or constantly having something to say              inappropriate- in other words people who build themselves up by tearing others              down

          - Cyber-bullying - sending mean emails or text messages

          - Hitting, kicking or showing or other kinds of physical bullying.

          - Taking money or other belongings

#2 BULLYING IS NOT A NORMAL PART OF GROWING UP!!! - Getting teased, harassed, insulted, picked on, abused, or hurt is not normal. People who think it is normal part of growing up are most likely not going to be someone that is going to be able to help stop the bullying. These types of people only send the message to the bullies that is OK for them to bully and give the bully the green light to go forward with their hrassment.

#3 IT IS NOT TATTLING TO TELL AN ADULT - When you are being bullied it is JUST PLAIN SMART to speak up and tell someone in authority. HOWEVER THIS IS ALSO IMPORTANT, if you see someone being bullied it is important that you report this abuse to an adult as well. Don't ignore it just because it is not happening to you.

#4 BULLYING HURTS FOR A LONG TIME - Many kids have dropped out of school, sports or other activities because bullying. Many become depressed, sad, afraid or desperate about the situation and many have committed suicide, have hurt themselves in other ways, or have hurt others (I.e. school killings). Many adults still remember to this day their experiences with bullying when they were younger. PEOPLE DO NOT GET OVER BEING BULLYIED.

#5 BULLYING HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE BULLY'S SELF-ESTEEM - Most bullies have very high self-esteem. They enjoy building themselves up by tearing others down. Bullies feel empowered when they can make someone else feel less, and they get fuel from their fire when no one stands up to them. Bullying starts when kids are younger in grade school, it becomes very prevalent during middle school and many times will carry over into high school. As students get older, most mature and grow out of bullying However, you still have some that will continue on even in their senior year and it is those people that take bullying into the work place and into their adult life. Some people get pleasure out of making others feel bad. Strange concept, but it happens!

#6 NO ONE DESERVES TO BE BULLIED - No one ask for it. There is no excuse for it, well, no good excuse anyway. All bullies have their excuse. They try to justify their actions because they do not want to be viewed as the bad guy. (See my list of excuses that bullies use!)

#7 BULLYING ALWAYS HURTS - EMOTIONALLY, MENTALLY AND PHYSICALLY - If you are bullying someone, please stop!!! Do unto others as you would have them do unto you!! It is wrong and if you believe in God, you should know that you are going to have to answer for your actions someday. Stop Bullying Now!!! How can making others feel bad - make you feel good??

#8 BULLYS WILL NOT GO AWAY IF YOU IGNORE THEM - As much as we want to think that this will happen, it usually just makes the bullying worse over time because the bully is trying to get a reaction from you and the more you ignore them - the harder they try to get a reaction from you.

#9 COMPLAINING ABOUT A BULLY IS NOT "CHILDISH" - You are simply standing up your yourself and have the right to not be bullied. Being different is not a reason to bully anyone.

#10 NEVER SUFFER IN SILENCE!!! - Always tell an adult. Studies have shown that bullying stops when adults step in and telling an adult rarely makes the situation worse. Always go to a person with authority over the bully such as; your parent, teacher, principal, or school counselor.

If you would like to have more information about bullying, please go to my partner in this campaign Stop Bullying Now!