Since 2017, cyberbullying has gained 9% of awareness in comparison to past years — but how can we do more for each group of individuals involved? Here’s what we could do to make everyone feel safe.
If you're being bullied:
To everyone that’s a victim of cyberbullying, you’re never alone. Reach out to those you trust, whether it’s your friends or family members. If the bully is someone close to you, try expressing your emotions to them as they may have unintentionally caused harm and will be educated to not repeat such mistakes again.
However, if you face any form of hate intentionally, you should block and report the user to the platform or to the authorities. The urge to retaliate will rise as we turn towards the bully in helplessness, and though such emotions are understandable and any form of disrespect should never be ignored, it’s essential to understand that when one gets cyberbullied, we must remember to not fight fire with fire.
Instead, find an effective, dominant, and respectable way to say, “Enough!”.
If you've witness someone being bullied:
We commonly see criticism in topics that involve a democratic opinion projected towards a certain community or individual regardless of the social platform. Even though criticism arises from views that are morally or factually intolerable, these are times when we’re called to resolve the situation by acknowledging the victims’ emotions and to educate those who have crossed the line. Therefore, when acknowledging an act of cyberbullying, be careful to not hurt the bully but instead support the victim by educating, blocking, and reporting the user.
If you're bullying someone:
Whether done intentionally or unintentionally, cyberbullying results in an individual being hurt.
As users of social platforms, we must be aware of our tone and terminologies used when sharing our thoughts. Reflection is key so before sharing a comment, reflect on your point and what you aim to say. For starters, try imagining that you’re receiving the comment — how would you feel?
Cyberbullying is an ongoing problem and unfortunately, it's something that's difficult to eradicate. Rackets are often made against the bullies but that doesn’t educate them. It’s essential to understand that our aim is to reduce cyberbullying by acknowledging the victims’ emotions and educating social media users on how to respect every individual.
Let’s do our part in spreading kindness on our social media accounts and to prevent cyberbullying the proper way.