el Don News
By Rogelio Santana and Nashe Harley
The Communication Studies Department hosted a seminar Thursday about the effects of bullying. While the conference focused mainly on bullying in the LGBT community, it offered insight on the impact harassment has on students and community members.
“Don’t ignore it. It wont go away,” Santa Ana College professor Lance Lockwood said.
Throughout the seminar, Lockwood offered examples of bullying he experienced in his own childhood. Part of the problem is that too many people are willing to look the other way. When told about it, many are unsure of how to solve the issue, Lockwood said.
More than 2.7 million students in the U.S. are bullied each year and about 2.1 million students have admitted that they are guilty of bullying others, according to the National School Safety Center.
“We as a community need to be responsible for our actions,” Lockwood said.
In some cases, victims decide to take their anger out on the people who bullied them, often using extreme measures.
On Tuesday, a Santa Ana high school student was arrested for sending an email where he threatened to kill at least ten other students. He was tired of being bullied, Santa Ana police said. In the email the student tried to recruit others to help him carry out a mass shooting.
At SAC there is a Safe Space program, which consists of a group of professors trained to provide a secure place for students to go when experiencing harassment or discrimination. These professors are available for anyone who needs to talk about whatever issues are going on in their life.
“Be a role model,” Lockwood said.
