Our world needs to fill itself with the idea that your differences should never make you feel superior or inferior to others, because the beauty of our world is embraced by the diversity of its people. However, we begin to doubt this, when our experiences suggest otherwise. It makes us question whether any equality lies within our differences.
This year, the ABA (Anti-Bullying Alliance) had chosen the theme: ‘All Different, All Equal’, for their 14th annual Anti-Bullying week, which had drawn in, towards the middle of November.
The themes of ‘Anti-Bullying Week’ are used as a significant tool in raising awareness about different aspects within bullying, and this year, it was used to bring recognition to the fact that a lack of confidence in one’s differences is the main root of one’s fear of being bullied and not feeling accepted.
After surveying 600 children and young people in a survey, the ABA, a partnership of organisations, found that children wanted to tackle bullying by preventing the stigma of perceived difference.
The theme chosen was therefore used to motivate the idea that young people should not let their differences, and the differences of others, hold them back from feeling and being equal, within schools, and other social environments.
Like every year, Anti-Bullying Week allows everyone to reflect on how far we’ve come in terms of preventing bullying within ourselves, our own communities, and nationally. It is always evident that within bullying, there are stigmas that need to be broken, ideas that need to be addressed, and gaps that need to be filled.
However, it also allows us to observe the positive response towards bullying, and realise how much we’ve understood aspects of bullying, to therefore prevent it.
From doing so, it is visible that as bullying and its effects come in many forms, so does the perceived reasons behind it. It ranges from one’s appearance to one’s interests, and anything in between. However, the basis of all of these reasons come from being different to others.
It is evident that several people often grow up without being taught and encouraged to accept and appreciate their differences to make them feel more confident and equal in social environments. This is something that we seem to easily push aside and not give enough acknowledgement to. We often overlook how spreading the idea of admiring everyone’s differences can prevent a majority of bullying situations from taking place and also restrain the fear of being bullied because of one’s differences.
Sometimes, we also disregard that depreciating the differences of others, in a slight or considerable manner, in an intentional or unintentional way, can heavily influence how they view themselves, how others view them and also how they view others, somewhat leading to a chain reaction of feelings of inadequacy and inequality. Consequently, this can lead to bullying, or if not, significant lack of confidence and an intense feeling of not fitting in.
After surveying students from my college, 93.33% of students agreed that changes do need to be made to allow people to appreciate the uniqueness of everyone.
When asked what changes need to be made to allow this to therefore prevent bullying, a student suggested ‘finding common grounds and creating understanding even when there is not always agreeing.’ This idea holds a lot of significance in terms of fixing the roots of problems with perceiving differences, as it demonstrates that merely the act of understanding can go a long way.
A student also put forward the idea of ‘teaching people to be proud of themselves for who they are.’ This is agreeable to a certain extent as confidence in oneself can lead to feelings of equality within a social environment. However, some people may think that excessive encouragement of pride in oneself can lead to egoism and feelings of superiority possibly causing them to bully others.
Another student proposed: ‘no standards are set for what is deemed ‘normal’, that way it is accepted that everyone is different’, to stir away from comparison and disregard the idea of ‘normal’ as it leads to feelings of inequality.
27% of the students confirmed that their differences do make them feel equal to others while 33.33% agreed that sometimes it does; and sometimes it doesn’t.
It all goes to show that within the world, each person has their own differences and there is equality within it, we just need to make sure we pursue it, before inequality pursues us.
Hafsa Moolla, City and Islington Sixth Form College
