A 9-year old dies by Bullycide?

Check out the article below and you might feel as I do...THIS is a Bullycide!

...FORT WORTH, Texas -- What could cause a 9-year-old to take his own life?

Authorities, friends and the family of a boy from The Colony in Texas who was found hanged at school this past Thursday afternoon are struggling with that question after his apparent suicide.

A staffer at Stewart's Creek Elementary School discovered fourth-grader Montana Lance in a bathroom, police said. No children witnessed the incident.

http://www.newsobserver.com/386/story/300896.html

Brandon's Story

Here are some short quotes from Bullycide in America, taken from Brandon's Chapter - Bullies Who Kill - By Cathy Swartwood Mitchell

“The worst sin toward our fellow creatures is not to hate them, but to be indifferent to them: that's the essence of inhumanity.” George Bernard Shaw

"...I have tried to write Brandon’s story for three days and have not been able to complete it…maybe today. I have a lot to say and this is a very painful and emotional subject for me. While my heart goes out to the victims of all school shootings, a different type of crime is happening in our schools. It has devastated my life.

"Although rarely labeled as such, "bullying" is a crime. It injures, maims, destroys and kills. Until a proactive approach is taken against crimes of bullying, a reactive approach to crimes of school shootings is futile.

"Bullying is a crime in which the perpetrators are rarely punished and the victims rarely receive justice. This crime is usually repetitive and a victim is injured and traumatized over and over again. When bullying claims yet another victim, few notice and even fewer care.

"Oftentimes, the victims themselves are blamed by being told that they must be doing something to "deserve" it. These victims are isolated and usually suffer in silence. The media doesn't broadcast the injuries or deaths of these silenced victims. Our nation doesn't share in their pain or extend sympathies to their survivors. Communities aren't outraged by these senseless and equally devastating crimes. The only outrage in our nation — in our communities — is when the psychological injuries caused by the bullying are externalized, and we have yet another school shooting."


To order, "Bullycide in America: Moms speak out about the Bullying/suicide connection" go to http://www.bullycide.org/. The book can be ordered by e-book (download), or by softbound print.

If I were to write a letter to Oprah

If I were to write a letter to Oprah, what would I say?

Something like this...

Dear Oprah,

Nine years and five days ago, a tragedy of an unspeakable kind happened to our family. Our son, Jared, took his life. He was 13 years and 6 days old.

Our family has never been the same; I have never been the same.

When I walked into our home that morning, after being called by a dispatcher to come home, and heard the news from my husband, that Jared was dead, I knew that depression had driven Jared to take his life and that bullying was the trigger.

That was the moment of change in my life. Since that day, I have resolved that I would try to prevent that same outcome in other lives.


I would say more...
I would want Oprah to see that she can help me in my resolve.
But maybe I'll add more in the next blog

Brenda High
Author, Bullycide in America
www.Bullycide.org

Press Release

Here is a copy of the press release that is being sent out to media outlets by volunteers and the "Bullycide Moms" this week:

For Immediate Release

Contact: Brenda High
509-547-1052 brenda@jaredstory.com

Grieving Mothers Expose the Reality of Bullying and Suicide in newly released book – Bullycide in America

September 10, 2007 – WA – What happens when a child is bullied to the point of hopelessness? For some young people the only escape from the pain is suicide.

Bullycide in America, Moms Speak Out About the Bullying/Suicide Connection is filled with the real-life stories of dozens of parents who share their own personal pain as they watched their children suffer and struggle because of the bullying epidemic.

This is a book of real stories about real kids. Kids who took their own lives because they thought it was their only way out of a hopeless situation. It is about the tragic choices they made in an effort to end the pain - when they believed there was no other solution.

Researchers acknowledge that within the teen population, there is a “high prevalence of bullying behaviors.” The National Youth Violence Prevention Resource Center [NYVPRC] reports that suicide is the third leading cause of death among teenagers - almost 2,000 teens are successful in their attempts to end their lives each year.

The mothers who tell their stories in this book do not need researchers or experts to make the connection between bullying and suicide. They know firsthand that as long as we intellectualize this phenomenon and debate it, it will remain an impersonal subject of speculation, avoidance, paralysis, guilt, and blame rather than one of responsibility and change.

This book is for those of you with young children, who will soon be preteens and teenagers. It is for those with teenagers. (do we need this repeated?) It is for grandparents who are watching over loved ones. This book is for people who work in law enforcement, health care, education, or in any profession involving children and teenagers. It is for concerned citizens who simply want to be educated so they can help to make a difference.

The vision for the book came from Brenda High. Having lost her 13-year-old son, Jared, on September 29, 1998 to suicide as a direct result of being bullied, Ms. High has made it her personal mission to educate as many people as possible as to the risks involved in youth suicide.
In addition to coordinating efforts with other parents who have lost a child to bullying in order to educate the public of this silent epidemic, Ms. High works with state lawmakers to get anti-bullying laws passed, educators to create an attitude of change and parents to teach the importance of documenting bullying.

Bullycide in America is available at www.bullycide.org .
Media representatives can receive a 25-page media book by request.

JBS Publishing, Inc. - ISBN 1-59029-069-0 - $22.95 retail

####

Brenda High is available for interviews. Other authors may or may not be available. Please contact Brenda High for further information.
509-547-1052 brenda@jaredstory.com

Bullycide "Mums" - Australia

This weekend I met another Bullycide mom in Australia - she called herself a bullycide "mum". Suicide's attributed to bullying, "bullycide," is not just an American phenomenon. Bullycides are happening all over the world. Our sad "Bullycide Mom's Club" is growing, and that's a sad commentary for our world community. We need to change attitudes about bullying in ALL of our schools.
~Brenda High

Working on the online Book

Today I've spent most of the day working on the online e-book, Bullycide in America: Moms speak out about the bullying/suicide connection. I'm making progress.

What's great about the online edition is that it will be easier to read, have lots of color pictures of the kids, a favorite quotes section, plus a recommended resource section from the writers. There will also be bonus downloads. The book will be offered as an affiliate program allowing readers & organizations to make a little money out as they get the word out about the dangers of bullying.

I can't wait to have it all ready go on the site, www.bullycide.org. ...Updates to the site is the next project I'll be working on.

I'll keep readers of this blog posted on my progress.
~Brenda

We are the Bullycide Moms

My name is Brenda and I lost a child to "bullycide", a suicide attributed to the effects of bullying, September 29, 1998. I have never been the same.

I recently compiled a book called, "Bullycide in America: Moms speak out about the bullying/suicide connection" with 9 other writers, 6 of whom lost their children to bullycide just like me.

I welcome any comments from others who are parents (or grandparents) of children who are bullied, students who are being bullied, survivors who somehow got through the trauma of bullying or anyone else who would like to share your thoughts.

Our book will be available to order in early September 2007 and our online book (with an affiliate program) should be ready by August 16th. Go to www.bullycide.org for more details.

Also check out www.bullypolice.org and www.jaredstory.com.

~Brenda