Bullying is harsh, relentless and unforgiving. The entire process is so cruel that it leaves an everlasting mark on the minds of victims and perpetrators alike.

Workable solutions to bullying problem have been scarce and the victims of bullying are taking matters into their own hands in an effort to defend themselves against their ruthless adversaries.

A new study suggests that victims of bullying are more likely to bring weapons to school to take a jab at bullies. This might be good news for information junkies, but has caused alarm amongst parents and academics because the trend is being viewed as a dangerous development.

The Spirit of Vengeance

The study based on data from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said that thousand of kids who admitted to being victims of bullying were also likely to bring a weapon to school.

The study analyzed a detailed survey of 15,000 high school students who were asked about occurrence of bullying in their surroundings.

The study revealed that almost 20 percent of the interviewed high school students said they were victims of bullying within the past 12 months (from the date of the study).

The most telling revelation made by the researchers was that approximately 250,000 bullying victims were carrying guns, knives or clubs to school within the last 30 days preceding the survey.

Armed to the Teeth

Dr Andrew Adesman, senior researcher of the study who works with Cohen Medical Center of New York, said, “They’re telling us that there’s practically one child in every classroom that’s carrying a weapon.”

In addition, the study also said that most bullying victims usually belonged to lower grades, were female and white.

It also said that 8.6 percent of bullying victims took a weapon to school when compared with 4.7 percent of students who were not bullied in any way.

Catalyst for Violence

The study showed the following four factors being responsible for an increase in the chances of a bullying victim carrying a weapon to school.

• If the students declined to go to school due to a feeling of insecurity and being exposed to assault.
• Students who had property damaged or stolen.
• Threatened or actually injured with a weapon.
• Being involved in a physical fight.

Caught in the Act

Lisa Lovolos (16) of Northeast Philadelphia brought a knife to school after undergoing months of harsh bullying. The incident came to light when she was arrested and suspended from school for five days.

She later said, “I knew that I was wrong to have it, but I mean I felt like I needed something to protect myself.”

These words show the depth of helplessness of a young teenage girl in the face of constant bullying and the failure of the system to address such a pressing issue.

Adesman said in regard to these armed students, “This group that’s not only traumatized psychologically, and they worry for themselves physically, but they also pose a threat to the rest of the student body.”

With these words of caution, he also laid down the plan as to how to stop bullying by saying that educators have to push themselves more so that they could carry out a better plan than the ones being used presently. According to him, schools should not only focus on bullies alone but also keep a strict eye on victims as well.