The problem of bullying is huge and is now coming under the severe scrutiny of society. People often tend to think about the young child bully when one brings up the subject of the bully. People may conjure up the image of a big, mean, strong boy who threatens and taunts another smaller socially inept boy perhaps trying to get some money off of him during recess. This picture is quite the stereotype as for today the bully takes on many characteristics and scenarios. Not only is the bully not just gender specific, the bully can travel collectively as a gang or “mob”. The bully is not just a child but can be an adult. The bully can be a colleague in the workplace or even a boss. The bully can be found through out society in various positions and not surprisingly in high positions of authority. It is quite troublesome on society when it is the judge and the lawyer who are the bully.
It is really most important to understand that whether one is talking of bullying among children in the school yard, among adults via workplace harassment or by the misuse of power by judges or lawyers, or other wise, it is all much the same thing, stemming from and perpetuated by faulty laws and social norms. If we are going to find the solutions and bring about change we must identify the problem at the root of the entire problem and address it at that level.
There are some obvious differences of course between the kinds of abuses that occur such as age, the extent of violence, and the degree of variance of power between the victim and the perpetrator.
There are however many aspects that are consistent among the issues. If you can see how the young child being bullied in the school yard by a number of classmates excessively and the handling of the situation is the same as a worker being harassed in the workplace and the handling of the situation as the same as the misuse of power in the legal system with the judges and the lawyers and the other positions of authority and the handling of the situation, one can see them as the same problem.
The way the issue is handled is the problem. There is a societal concept to be quiet about it – not to snitch or to just take it – “ignore it” or sympathize with the abuser. There is also the societal concept to go tell the authority and let them deal with it. Definitely you are not to deal with it yourself. “Do not take matters into your own hands”
Ignoring the problem does not make it stop or go away indeed the problem becomes worse. The adverse affects both psychological and physical can not just be taken….nor should it. Letting the authorities deal with it possibly could work if the authorities would do things to rectify the problem. They however contribute to the problem. Often the authority disregards the complaint and/or they often hold the victim-blaming mentality whether they are conscious of this factor not. They focus on the victim – that the victim is responsible for the act of violence put upon them…for being weaker if nothing else. The authority blames the victim believing there is no problem if there is no complaint. If action is taken it is subjected towards the victim’s actions.
For example in the school yard the young child being victimized stays in from recess. In the workplace the victim of workplace harassment is expected to leave the job and their livelihood. Or often the authorities take no action until the point of time where the victim snaps from the abuse and then they want to charge and focus on the victim’s “unacceptable” and dangerous, threatening behaviour.
And as is in some cases the employer that is responsible and obligated to ensure safety and protection not only does not protect the employee but is the direct instigator of abuses individually or as part of the mob joining the other employees.
It is often too the case, that the authorities whose positions in society to protect and serve the people, those overseeing and executing the laws to ensure safety for those particularly most vulnerable are indeed behaving most contrary to that end. Indeed all the problems are stemming from the faulty laws and social norms that are maintained by the government with the aid of its legal system.
The problem of bullying and misuse of power is systemic. It is most urgent to understand both the micro and macro of the problem and having identified the problem correctly then to address it, particularly at its deepest roots that being the tainted legal system. It is an unjust system designed as such. The justice system is not accessible to everyone whether one is referencing the use of legalese so communication can not be understood by all or the unreasonable associated costs. Yes the problem of bullying and misuse of power is systemic. Society promotes the bully personality type and sacrifices the good souls through its faulty laws and social norms.
Yes, a bully is a bully by any other name is still a bully but please do not mistake someone protecting themselves from a bully as a bully.
There is a shift that is occurring and must occur as society cannot sustain itself on the path it is on.
There is hope. The systemic problem of bullying is being addressed.
Marilyn Garshowitz is the author of the feisty, non-fiction book The Brutal Truth. It delves into the issue of bullying and misuse of power – whether one is talking of bullying in the schoolyard, via workplace harassment or misuse of power from judges or lawyers, or otherwise. Ms. Garshowitz is also the founder of the The Brutal Truth Organization established to continue the work initiated within the book and to establish herself as a writer, speaker and educator on the subject. Marilyn has also written the short story “GEM” which is included in the anthology, Canadian Voices Volume Two published by BookLand Press. She has also been co-published within a psychology journal with professors and is currently working on her second book. Online Promotion by William Wu - Relaxing Music for Body Balance.