May-Lee Chai response to Preparing Children for Bullying and Hate Crimes we hope never come

from the beautiful and brilliant author May-Lee Chai in response to http://chicagoistheworld.org/2012/04/preparing-our-children-for-the-bullying-and-hate-crimes-we-hope-never-come/:

Frances,

Great column, great advice, as usual!

I'm really glad you wrote on this topic. And what great advice you give to kids about speaking up.

This is what's missing from the other media accounts I've read and seen about bullying.

They focus on what parents can do, what the kid being bullied can do, but you also but responsibility on kids who WITNESS bullying, which we all know is the vast majority.

It's so important that you show there's moral responsibility --and civic responsibility, and self-interest!--in telling an adult (so much more useful than just trying to defend the kid in the present) and to keep telling adults. Also puts responsibility on adults' shoulders. Many adults DO NOT FEEL ANY RESPONSIBILITY, but they should.

Great column!

May-lee