Learning to Love by Madeline

Learning to Love by Madeline - March 2017 Scholarship Essay

One topic I find that could really benefit from being addressed is that of bullying. I find that bullying and discrimination often fall into the same category, and that they have similar views and goals. Both involve threatening to harm or to actually harm someone for no reason, or for the wrong reasons. As the rate of intolerance rises not only in our country but all over the world, it is important that we remind ourselves and others that schools are not only a place of learning, but a community as well.
I personally have witnessed as religious groups, ethnicities, and sexualities are targeted and harassed merely for their identity. I would discuss that these things are inarguable; they are a part of someone’s identity and that bullying will only increase levels of hatred on both sides, rather than solve any problems or correct any wrongs. It is especially important that the upcoming generation understands these fundamental ideas, for someday it will be them running the world, and hopefully that will be a world with less hatred in it.
I would also emphasize that we have the opportunity to make our mark on history. In a time when hate crimes, xenophobia, and other forms of discrimination run rampant, we can stop this wave of bullying in its tracks. Instead of picking on one another, and calling names and labelling other and other, equally painful forms of bullying, we can rally together. We can treat each other with kindness, compassion, understanding. We can provide comfort for those who feel threatened, a safety net for them to fall back on when they get knocked down by others. Lastly, I would say that we can stand in solidarity and show the world that there is no need to discriminate, or to bully, because we are united in love, rather than divided in hatred.