Every year over 13 million kids are bullied according to Bully, the documentary. Bullying is a nationwide problem that is quietly set aside. Eight percent of those 13 million will attempt suicide according to the documentary. Not only can bullying happen at school, but it can take place at home as well, through cyber bullying. With no safe place to turn to, kids feel as if they have no choice. A new film that reveals the cold, hard truth about bullying was released on April 27. Bully is a documentary that shows what really happens to the kids that are bullied. The issue of bullying is well known and every year personnel at school talk and try to teach ways of preventing bullying and finding someone to turn to if a student is bullied.

“West makes kids feel safe through the teachers and the interaction in the classroom,” Lead Counselor Ann Raidt said.

Depending on the type and how bad the bullying case is, different steps can be taken. If someone continues to make repeated hurtful comments to another student, he or she can be sent to sub school and be warned not talk to the other student unless they change their attitude. More severe cases, however, can involve the police. Bullying can take place in all forms, from physical violence to making harassing comments to cyber bullying online, making destructive interaction which targets a person. If one knows of a case or is dealing with bullying, talking to parents, teachers or counselors will help.

“I think West has more of a problem than we know,” Raidt said. “I would say it’s not bad because the average age of students at West makes them better able to take care of themselves.”

The new documentary, Bully, concentrates on the problem of bullying in the U.S. and how it affects kids. This documentary follows families that are affected by bullying and shows what happens to the kids in and out of school.

“Bullying is cruel and unwarranted,” junior Jake Goldman said. “I think a major problem now is cyber bullying since it sometimes goes down very subtly.”

 It was originally released in 2011 but was rated R by the Major Picture Association of America (MPAA) for language and violence. The Weinstein Company, who produced the film, appealed for a lower rating so that the film could reach the intended audience, the kids who suffer from bullying or bully their classmates. The MPAA refused to change the rating which started a petition. Celebrities such as Meryl Streep, Johnny Depp and members of Congress appealed to the MPAA. Teenagers got involved too, getting signatures so that the MPAA had no choice but to lower the rating. In 2011, before the MPAA changed the rating, Bully was released unrated to film festivals where it began to quickly gain awards such as Best Picture from the Hamptons International Film Festival and the Audience and Jury awards at the Bergen International Film Festival.

“The first step to preventing bullying is education,” Raidt said. “Educating students, teachers

 and parents helps to prevent and stop bullying.”

Bully shows how one family is affected after their child commits suicide because of bullying and also follows a young boy as he is harassed on the bus and in school. The film really gives an insight to how bullying affects everyone, not just those who bully or are bullied. The film also emphasizes what a large problem bullying is and how it is important to stop it before it is too late.

“Bullying is destructive because bullies only do what they do because they are unhappy with themselves and feel the need to take it out on other people,” junior Brian Waggoner said.

Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoulet also focuses on the problem of bullying. Some Honors English III classes are currently reading this book. The book takes place in a small town when a teenager is bullied for years and brings a gun to school. The book flips viewpoints, showing how everyone is affected by the shooting. Picoulet shows how everyone is forced to deal with the impact of a student being bullied on the school; the student decides to act in a dangerous and irrational way because he felt as if there was no other way to protect himself.

“It’s important for our society to treat everyone with respect,” counselor Linda Puster said.  “It is essential for our well-being and a way to promote peace. The first step is to stop bullying where we live and where we go to school. Plano West represents the very best in many areas, such as sports, music, the arts and speech. We need to lead the pack in our attitudes as well.”