Light sentence for bully, heavy burden on kids everywhere


(Originally published in Times of Trenton Letters to the Editor – May 23)
Dharun Ravi wipes a tear in the courtroom after being sentenced to 30 days in jail at the Middlesex County Courthouse in New Brunswick. 5/12/12 (John O’Boyle/The Star-Ledger)

As disappointing as is Dharun Ravi’s light sentence in the Tyler Clementi bullycide case, the fact remains that he takes no responsibility and feels no remorse for what he did, which makes the outcome all the worse. And the message to bullies, victims, bystanders and upstanders statewide is that this kind of abuse is not taken seriously, so good luck out there.

The consequence of bullies remaining unpunished and bystanders remaining uninvolved means we’ll see more victims with low self-esteem, higher truancy, deeper depression and even more death, as children who just lose hope simply kill themselves.

I invite readers to come join us tomorrow night to watch the new movie “Bully” at AMC Hamilton, starting at 6 p.m. Following the movie, we’ll break into small groups and talk about what we saw, what we can learn from it and what we can do.

If you can’t be there Thursday night, come join Kidsbridge for our inaugural Walk2Stop Bullying on Sunday, June 3rd 9 a.m. to noon. We will be walking to raise money and awareness, tour the Tolerance Museum at The College of New Jersey and learn more about how to reduce bullying.

— by Lynne Azarchi, executive director of Kidsbridge (kidsbridgemuseum.org), who created a youth tolerance museum and learning lab on campus at The College of New Jersey in Ewing.


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