Stop the Hate, Spread the Love
I was just reading about a guy who, now 20, was mercilessly harassed when he was in school. The school did nothing about the six years of suffering he endured.
Not only did his district fail to take steps to curb the harassment, officials actually discouraged him from reporting misconduct. And – for the record – we’re not talking about small stuff here. Apparently, “stupid nigger” and other derogatory insults were regularly lobbed his way. Additionally, he routinely had food thrown on him and was spit on. All in school. In public. With witnesses.
As if that’s not rough enough, a public website was created with the sole intent of making his life miserable. At one point, a court intervened when, on the website, another student threatened to lynch him. Astoundingly, his school and district looked the other way when he suffered retaliatory harassment because of the court’s involvement.
It should come as no surprise that Russell Dickerson has a lot of healing to do. Severe depression is just one of the hurdles he is working to overcome.
Despite that, he has said, “I learned from my parents that you should never give up. You should fight for your rights – you don’t just walk away.”
We can all learn something from that.
We – like so many other people – know what it’s like to be on the receiving end of extreme hate. It’s our responsibility as co-world citizens to do something – to fight for our rights and the rights of others who are marginalized.
Do not stand by when someone is mistreated. Demand justice and, most importantly, offer a kind word to the victim.
When one person suffers, we all suffer.
With that, we’re off to spread some love this Valentine’s Day. Join us and do the same!
Terrible. There isnt much of a greater tragedy than good people standing idle.
Nice twist to the love of valentines day!
You know we can’t leave it at chocolates and flowers.
Your comment just reminded me of a quote from Albert Einstein:
“The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don’t do anything about it.”
Now, if only all the people who keep preaching family values at us would actually go out and practice some! Thanks for the reminder. And hope you have a great Valentine’s Day!
Testify!
Happy Valentine’s Day to you two. Even though “love is all you need” is overly simplistic, on days like this one I really wish it were true.
Isn’t that the truth!
It’s sad to imagine that this happens every day… all over the world. What is sad-er is that it is the districts that don;t want to deal with it and tell them not to report it. It’s true when one suffers we all suffer. I love the message y’all spread.
I am a teacher and I see this happen everyday. Bullying is only getting worse now that social media and the internet are so heavily used. It’s so awful. When I was teaching, everyday I had a mini lesson about respect, love and kindness. Hopefully hearing it a young age can leave an impression. It’s so sad. You stated my motto. Spread the love. Amen.
Yes, this is a good post for “One Love Meg” isn’t it! AND you’re a teacher. Glad that people like you are working in education.
Bullying and racism is an ugly side of humanity that we should address
Sometimes I just can’t believe how much compassion is lacking in the world… and then I look in a different direction and see so much compassion being expressed from other people.
And someday the sheer amount of compassion will overwhelm those without it. At least I hope that is what happens. And soon.
Great post guys, I think the most important message is that it is awful to hear when this happens but it is worse when we just stand by and let it happen.
Great post–a little sad, but a stance and spreading that message is KEY. Love it.
If you don’t love yourself, how in the hell you gonna love somebody else?
Sorry, I couldn’t resist
But yes guys – self-love and sticking up and speaking out for those who feel like they can’t, that’s a great message to send on Valentine’s Day ^.^
Can we get an amen all up in here?
Now let the music play!
He is very special indeed. It is so frustrating and heartbreaking to read about a person so egregiously being hurt and let down by the very institution that should be proteching his safety and nurturing his future. Great message for Valentine’s Day time. Spread the love! Have a huge heart!
That’s what really gets us. In school – where you’re basically left to the control of others – you should not have these kinds of worries.
Shocking, disappointing, and embarrassing to hear that things like this still happen in our country today.
Impressive that Russell has such a positive attitude, and it sounds like he will be able to move on and recover from such awful abuse.
That’s how we feel when we read/hear these things. My gut instinct is to say “This still happens….” And then I wake up and remember that we have a long way to go.
Some of the things I hear about in high schools are just insane. You always wonder how it’s allowed to happen. I guess people just stand by and assume someone else will take care of it.
Yes, I think that’s exactly what happens a lot of times. Hearing this story has prompted us to commit to do our part when we witness people being mis-treated.
I like the title of your blog. We must spread the compassion we have to others, but never let others hurt us. It’s better to stay away from them and have a peaceful life.
So true!
Bullying sucks. I went through during one year of high school, when my parents moved out family from the inner city to the rural country, where I stood out like a sore thumb. My heart goes out to Russell and others like him. Thanks for reminding us that we need to stand up for those who cannot stand up for themselves.
Thanks for sharing, Bret.
I can imagine how hard it is for him. Reading his statement, I can tell he is very strong yet I don’t know how much harassment one can take no matter how strong he/she is and Russel is still young. It is very disappointing to know that there are people who are in authority are letting this pass by. I am just very disappointed.
That’s the thing, isn’t it? When you’re that young, you don’t yet have a strong sense of self. It’s cool that Russell is brave enough to speak out and to make it easier for students that attend that school after him.
A different take on spreading V-Day love…and I LOVE it.
Bullying really is out of control (I endured a ton if it growing up) – thought not in the same ways as Russell it seams.
I agree that if we can encourage the message of love rather then hate or revenge, we truly will be better off.
Thanks for the reminder guys!
Sorry to hear that, Brock. You sure haven’t let that bullying stop you, have you (and we have video to prove it!). On a positive note, it’s probably what makes you one of the most thoughtful people that we know.
Whenever I read or hear about situations like this, my stomach turns. I don’t understand why so much hate can/does live inside some people. Hopefully with people like you two and spreading the word, more and more people will turn against the bullies and create a better more peaceful world for the rest of us.
Yes, it’s up to all of us. And, really, people who are full of hate have had god-only-knows-what happen in their own lives. We need to work on showing them the other side as well