Bullying

Back in grade school my mom was a kindergarten teacher in the west side of Chicago where it was not a safe school or area to be in. There was another school down the block and sometimes during recess kids from that school would come to the school that my mom would teach at and pick on small kids who were on the playground. The kids at my mom’s school knew not to mess with us because we were Mrs. Shannon kids and they knew what the consequences would be if they heard that we were being bullied. One day I decided to stay in my mom’s classroom to play video game on here computer while everyone else including my sister went out on the playground for recess. Some kids came in and told me that my sister was about to get into a fight with some kids from the other school down the block, I jumped up and ran outside looking for my sister and I see her pushing these 2 guys and they were about to hit her back until I stepped in and told them not to do it. My sister ran inside to get my mom and she left me 2 against 1 and people were forming a circle chanting fight, and at the time I didn’t care what would happen to me because I wanted to defend my sister. So, me and the other guys started to fight, and I was actually winning until I felt someone grab me from behind and split all of us up. My mom was cursing out the kids who tried to start a fight with my sister and then dragged me back into her classroom and told me never to get in a fight out here in the west side because you don’t know who’s carrying a gun and you don’t know who they’ll bring up to the school to kill me. At the time I thought my mom was just saying nonsense, but when I grew older and experience some of my friends getting shot not to far from the school then I knew she was looking out for me and telling me the truth. After my mom had the talk with me a few days went by and I saw the same kids who started the fight with my sister again and I went up to them and apologized even though it was my sister who started the fight, but thankfully they accepted my apology and then we all went our separated ways. That was the only time I experienced bullying since the other schools I went to made sure bullying wasn’t happening among the students. At my high school they were really strict about bullying and if they found out someone was being bullied then that person would be expelled so some people didn’t bully people in school, but they instead were cyber bullying a few students who I know, but didn’t tell teachers or anyone, I pretty much stayed out of it and did my own thing. Bullying is still happening in this generation and young people are killing themselves because they believe that is the best option for them because people like me don’t speak up and defend them. If my kids or anyone I know see someone getting bullied I hope they’ll intervene and stop it from happening.