Bullying

Bullying is basically intimidation - it can take many forms and happens in lots of places. It's never OK, its not your fault and there are things that you can do to stop it. There are some good web sites below that offer solid advice on things that you can do to stop bullies, but first here are the basics:

ignore them / walk away - often bullying is just to get attention. If you can ignore or avoid them they don't get the attention that they're after
calmly tell them to stop - try not to shout or get aggressive - that just gets them more attention
tell an adult - preferably someone in a position to take some action: Telecom has a toll free help line: 0800 NO BULLY (0800 66 28 55)
be a friend - if you see someone else being bullied try to stop it. Its harder for bullies to pick on people who have the support of a group. Tell the victim it is not their fault and encourage them to talk to a trusted adult.

Bullying can take many forms, from name calling or spreading lies to physical or written abuse. It can also include coercion - making someone do something they don't want to do and exclusion of particular individuals.

Need to talk? Call Youthline 0800 37 66 33

Youthline provides a free, confidential and non judgmental telephone counselling service.

You can also send Youthline an e-mail or free text them on 234.

Text and cyber bullying

Bullying via cellphones has been in the news a lot recently. If you're in New Zealand you can phone your mobile provider for free:

Telecom: dial *123 or read this page about bullying
Vodafone: text bully to 4001 or download the Txt bullying brochure
2degrees: Tips and advice on bullying

Cyber bullying includes nasty and unwelcome texts, emails or messages on social networking or chat sites.

Do not reply to messages but do keep copies of the messages so that you can report them to the website owner or the phone company.

Bullying No Way: Ideas, resources and help for young people, parents and schools.
Bullying.org: Not-for-profit site that aims to eradicate bullying. Tips and advice for young people
Cellphone bullying: Dealing with cell phone bullies in New Zealand. From the Internet Safety Group.
Cyberbullying: This Netsafe cyberbullying website contains dedicated guidance for young people, parents and caregivers and teachers and principals who want help to understand and deal with bullying that takes place in cyberspace.
Kidscape: This site has solid advice for you on how to deal with bullying at school.
No bullying: from Telecom and the NZ Police
Raven Days: Tales from people who have been bullied - how they survived, as well as perspectives from parents and witnesses of bullying behaviour.
Report-it: This anonymous online reporting website for international students in Christchurch was a trial which has now ended. Its homepage lists contacts for people who can help if you are the target of hurtful words or actions because of your ethnicity.
SMS bullying archive: Articles about text (SMS) bullying at textually.org - all about texting, SMS and MMS
Stop text bully: All bullying is wrong. Stoptextbully.com is here to help you make a text bully stop.
That's Not Cool: Thatsnotcool.com is designed to address new and complicated problems between teens who are dating or hooking up - problems like constant and controlling texting, pressuring for nude pictures, and breaking into someone's e-mail or social networking page.
ThinkUKnow: Loads of information on how to stay safe online. All the hot topics are covered: including mobiles, blogging and gaming sites.
TXT Bully brochure from vodafone: Some guidelines from Vodafone NZ and NetSafe in PDF format.
Workplace Bullying: Think that once you leave school bullying is never going to happen again? For some people, the reality is much different.

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Need to talk? Call Youthline 0800 37 66 33

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