Quote Responding to the ASTI Constitution

I found this quote from Bany that I found very easy to relate to the ASTI constitution:

...girls do gang up on each other for a sense of pride, and victory over each other. It can be a way of winning a battle, but it leads to a way that makes others isolated to the shocking truth of what it can cause to relationships.

I chose this quote because it showed an example of something that would break the ASTI constitution. Bany's response to "Odd Girl Out" by Rachel Simmons talks about an event that would be breaking a couple rules to the constitution. The rules that would be broken are rule number one, rule number nine, and rule number ten. Rule number one, being "think before you speak or act" was broken by talking about other people behind their backs. Bany brought up that she was in an alliance in which she was the bully. She talked about gossiping about another person out of distaste, without being exactly sure of the consequences. But like any other bully, she gained a victorious sensation. "Make a positive impact on the people and environment around you" is the ninth rule in the ASTI constitution that was broken. When someone gossips about someone else, he/she is not really setting a positive effect on other people. What the gossiper is doing is pressuring or influencing other people to turn against the victim. That's nothing beneficial for the environment, neither it is for the bully or anyone else. What may seem right at first can easily feel sssoooo wrong at the end. The last rule in the ASTI constitution that was broken was rule number ten, which was "resolve conflict peacefully." The conflict that Bany had with another girl was obviously not peaceful, but most problems cant be solved peacefully. Some conflicts require some sort of violence or attack, especially in school. So basically if you're having a battle where you start to involve others in, the results wont be pretty. For the most part you hurt people's feeling, you lower their self-esteem. You can also embarrass yourself in front of others. And in the end, it doesn't even matter because you lose someone you deeply cared about. Its funny how one little gossip can cost so much pain for so long.

Response to "Odd Girl Out" by Rachel Simmons

             There was many times in which I was bullied by a larger group. I reacted to most of the bullies the same way, depending on what they did. If they just talked about me I would lose respect for them, and hate them from then on. If they actually hit me intentionally I would most likely defend myself by hitting back. Most of the times when I was harassed by other people happened when I was in 7^th grade; there were three guys who used to insult me every other day. I was getting sick of being called a fag, but I knew telling someone about that wouldn’t change anything. I remember being bullied in the past, when I tried telling a teacher about it they wouldn’t really care or they would just have a long conversation with the bully, but no consequences. I noticed that it was because the teachers didn’t have any proof, and each student would tell their own story. So then there was this time in 7^th grade where one of the bullies came up to me in math class and swung at me in the back of the head with a binder. Immediately I stood up and punched the guy in the cheek. That obviously pissed him off, so we swung at each other until the teacher saw and sent us to the principal’s office. It was so worth it because even though we both got suspended for a day, he and the other guys left me alone. That’s why whenever you’re being bullied; you should let the bully aggravate you enough for you to physically attack him or her in school. That way an adult will notice that you were being picked on, and it reached past your limit.

            I just never understand why people have to bring others down. Maybe they just think their better than everyone else. It could be that they just get bored and can’t find anything better to do, and so they cause trouble by giving a person hard time. I believe that parents have a lot to do with their children becoming bullies, maybe they’re not around as much, or don’t care what their child does. Another reason for people harassing others could be because they have bad experiences at home, and they feel like they need to take it out on others. Those are some ideas, but what is the true explanation for students having to be afraid of school?