by Mary Alice Carnes, Community Relations Director
At the microphone is Dr. Rebecca Bigler, Professor of Psychology, University of Texas at the April 11th screening of the Bully documentary.
It can seem that the focus on bullying is new to some, but as we know it’s an issue that has been a discussion topic for as long as people have been, well, people. With the release of the new documentary Bully by Lee Hirsch, the topic is back in full force. Discussion groups are popping up everywhere the film plays. The Theatre Action Project screening of Bully two weeks ago drew a sold out crowd and the event afforded a great opportunity for parents, school administrators and TAP staff to talk about the film and what is being done locally about the problem of bullying. Last year Anderson Cooper at CNN did a series of panel discussions to talk about bullying, with the results of a CNN Anderson Cooper 360 study being conducted with sociologist Robert Faris.
Instead of the National Public Radio’s Fresh Air program on April 20, KUT FM Radio aired Teen Stories from Generation PRX. It was a full hour of teens sharing their stories about bullying from a teen perspective. To catch up with their stories, listen to their segments by visiting Teen Stories.
Even today as I drove to work at Theatre Action Project, NPR news ran a story on autism and bullying, Children with Autism are Often Targeted with Bullying. The story cites how children with autism can be special targets. Listen to this news piece to hear the journey of one autistic child’s experience.
What bullying stories are you hearing? We’d love to hear from you, especially if you want to join the conversation about bullying with Theatre Action Project and the community. To join the discussion, click here.
What bullying stories do I hear? I hear many through my website that shares both my stories and the stories of others. You can read them at http://bullyinglte.wordpress.com. On another note, I wrote a play last year that was performed in some high schools on bullying. If you are interested, we can talk about sharing that with your group as well.