Everyone is bullied (From Gazette Series)

Everyone is bullied

SIR - "Bullies are cowards" - that has to be the most frequent phrase used on kids, I'd know I am a kid.

Now, you may think that I should be writing into a problem page in a teen's magazine, but my letter has some importance. Everyone gets bullied. The most vulnerable are probably the OAPs getting conned into buying windows and new driveways that clearly do not need refurbishing.

Children, the most frequent targets for bullying, are taunted, teased and terrorised day in, day out for any reason that the bully can find when, actually, there is nearly always no reason for bullying at all. Even the ever-playful birthday bumps have turned into full-on birthday beatings.

Finally come adults. They are there for protection, reassurance and comfort. So much so that they turn a blind eye to the bullying that they face.

I have found that when a friend of mine was recently getting bullied it wasn't just her that got affected by it. Seeing the effect that bullies have on people upsets almost everyone - friends, teachers and even, though they often are too 'strong' to admit it, parents.

Tell me, when will it all stop?

Justine Pemberton, 13, Upthorpe, Cam