International Stand Up to Bullying Day
Robyn Williams
Today is International Stand Up to Bullying Day. When dealing with harassment, consider:
If you were faced with an experience that is beyond the bounds, would this trigger your own past trauma and memory of abuse against you, in its broadest sense? How can you make sure you will think rationally when you are in the middle of it?
Would you be afraid of anything? If yes, what would worry you? Consider personal safety, harassment, having your words and claims misconstrued, gossiping, legal action, the impact on your capacity to carry on working, as well as broken connections and friendships.
What if the situation made you feel guilt and a sense of overwhelming responsibility? What if you had helped this person with something in the past?
What about your personal involvement? What if the alleged perpetrator was someone with whom you had close connections or wanted to/had collaborated with?
How about your stand on how the target needs to be helped, if at all? What if they turned to you for help?
How might you label or understand the antagonist? Are they an immoral person, mentally unwell, a perpetrator, or likely to be a victim themselves? Are they all of these things?
Bullying is a complex social and moral issue. Here are more ways that people can stand up in situations where they may be uncomfortable and create a new narrative.
