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8/17/2006 10:00:00
AM
To: National Desk
Contact: Michael Kharfen,
202-464-7016 or 202-262-3996
WASHINGTON, Aug. 17 /U.S. Newswire/
-- As America's kids prepare to go back to school, national law
enforcement leaders released a poll showing that one in three teens
and one in six preteens have been victims of cyber bullying. The
leaders estimate that more than 13 million children aged 6 to 17
were victims of cyber bullying. More than 2 million of those victims
told no one about the attacks.
Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff
and Charlotte Chief of Police Darryl Stephens released the poll and
called on every school in America to have a proven bulling
prevention program.
Key findings of the poll of 1,000
kids nationwide were:
-- One-third of all teens (12-17) and
one-sixth of children ages 6-11 have had mean, threatening or
embarrassing things said about them online.
-- 10 percent of the teens and four
percent of the younger children were threatened online with physical
harm.
-- 16 percent of the teens and
preteens who were victims told no one about it. About half of
children ages 6-11 told their parents. Only 30 percent of older kids
told their parents.
-- Preteens were as likely to receive
harmful messages at school (45 percent) as at home (44 percent).
Older children received 30 percent of harmful messages at school and
70 percent at home.
-- 17 percent of preteens and seven
percent of teens said they are worried about bullying as they start
a new school year.
The poll was conducted by Opinion
Research Corporation for Fight Crime: Invest in Kids, a national,
nonprofit, bipartisan organization of more than 3,000 police chiefs,
sheriffs, prosecutors, other law enforcement leaders and violence
survivors. Fight Crime: Invest in Kids takes a hard look at the
research to find out what works to prevent kids from turning to a
life of crime.
At the news conference, 15-year-old
cyber bullying victim Kylie Kenney from Vermont described a website
that called for her death and the years of threatening and
embarrassing phone calls and e-mails that she received from
classmates. She was forced to transfer schools twice as well as be
home schooled for a semester due to the cyber bullying.
"No child should have to endure the
cyber bullying I endured. I was scared, hurt and confused. I didn't
know why it was happening to me. I had nowhere to turn except to my
Mom. I am speaking out now because I want other kids who are bullied
online or on their cell phones to know that they should tell their
parents or other adults. You don't have to put up with it. Something
can be done," said Kenney.
Cyber bullying is the use of
electronic devices and information, such as e-mail, instant
messaging (IM), text messages, mobile phones, pagers and web sites,
to send or post cruel or harmful messages or images about an
individual or a group. This is a freer form of bullying than
traditional physical or name-calling attacks as the individual
responsible can be anonymous. Also, unlike standard bullying, there
is no respite or refuge for the victims since cyber bullying can go
on 24 hours a day and invade a victim's home.
"While millions of America's kids are
being attacked by email, phone, text message or on web sites, cyber
bullying must be arrested," said Shurtleff. He called on every
school to adopt a comprehensive anti-bullying program.
Research has found that the Olweus
Bullying Prevention program started in Norway and now implemented in
South Carolina and other states has the strongest results on
reducing bullying. The Olweus program can cut bullying in half. More
information on this program can be found at
http://www.fightcrime.org
Stephens said that cyber bullying can
be a crime and research shows that bullying can lead to later crime.
Stephens released 10 steps on how to
prevent cyber bullying. Key steps include:
-- Teach your kids to tell adults if
they're bullied
-- Every school must have a proven
anti-bullying program
-- Watch for signs that your child
may be a victim
-- Keep computers in common areas of
homes
"America's law enforcement leaders
are providing families with 10 practical steps to delete cyber
bullying from the current favorites list. Congress can take one step
by passing bullying prevention legislation so every school in the
country will establish a proven anti-bullying program," Stephens
said.
Rep. John Shimkus (R-Ill.) has
introduced a bill to help schools to establish proven bullying
prevention programs.
David Kass, executive director of
Fight Crime: Invest in Kids, said "In the coming school year, 13
million kids will be victims of cyber bullying. Law enforcement
leaders across the country urge that every school in America should
have an Olweus Bullying Prevention program to keep kids safe."
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