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Julian Albans
Mr. Jones
English
8 July 2013
Bullying in Cyberspace
What is cyberbullying, and how does it impact students and families? This question has
been discussed a great deal around the globe recently, yet many are still resistant and
unsupportive of those who wish to implement lawful penalties against cyberbullying. Lacking an
adequate knowledge of the implications of cyberbullying is dangerous. Cyberbullying is very
real and extremely serious. Ignoring the innocent victims of cyberbullying by willfully remaining
oblivious to such a serious issue is unacceptable. The cyberbullying epidemic can be brought to
an end once awareness is raised, and lawmakers impose harsher legal ramifications for those
who cyberbully others.
What is cyberbullying? According to an article on KidsHealth, Cyberbullying is the use
of technology to harass, threaten, embarrass, or target another person (Cyberbullying). Social
media websites, such as Facebook, are the stomping grounds for millions of bullies that
impose their selfish and hateful agendas on their peers. As the digital age steadily continues to
invade every aspect of American life, cyberbullying has increased exponentially. Cyberbullying
can be worse than physical bullying due to the tendency for countless people, even strangers, to
join in on ridiculing helpless victims for no other reason than to discourage them.
What might happen if parents and other adults took cyberbullying more seriously? The
amount of cyberbullying cases observed in society, today, would decrease by a significant
amount. I realize that there have been numerous anti-bullying campaigns recently, but the grim

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reality and seriousness of cyberbullying is typically dismissed by most people. The lack of
proper education about cyberbullying has led to depressing statistics such as, [o]nly 7% of U.S.
parents are worried about cyberbullying, even though 33% of teenagers have been victims of
cyberbullying (Cyberbullying Statistics). The truth is, most adults do not take bullying
seriously unless their child is actively suffering at the hands of cyberbullies. The disconnection
from the physical world associated with cyberbullying allows parents to ignore or downplay the
seriousness of cyberbullying without considering the consequences. If parents were genuinely
aware of the impacts that cyberbullying has on children, teens, and young adults, the battle
against cyberbullying would progress much quicker. Cyberbullying does not consist of kids
being kids with no chance for negative consequences to occur. Countless children have
committed suicide as a result of being cyberbullied.
What are the effects of cyberbullying? According to an article titled Cyberbullying,
[s]evere, long-term, or frequent cyberbullying can leave both victims and bullies at greater risk
for anxiety, depression, and other stress-related disorderssome kids [victims and bullies alike]
have turned to suicide. This reveals that even bullies go through some of the same drastic
effects of cyberbullying as their victims, and it places much more emphasis on the need for
everyone to work together towards ending cyberbullying. Cyberbullying corrupts and destroys
innocent lives every day, and everyone should take a purposeful, anchored stance against this
unacceptable behavior without delay. Cyberbullying is currently out of control and on the rise.
43% of teens age[s] 13 to 17 report that theyexperienced some sort of cyberbullying in
[2013] (Cyberbullying Statistics). In order to change the course of these events, everyone, old
and young, must advocate for the victims of cyberbullying, and become involved in programs
and organizations which raise awareness and aid in the fight against cyberbullying.

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Works Cited
"Cyberbullying Statistics." InternetSafety101.org: Statistics. Enough Is Enough. Web.
"Cyberbullying." KidsHealth. Ed. Larissa Hirsch. The Nemours Foundation. Web.