There were so many reasons to stay silent. It is easy; your social status remains unchanged, and you still get invited to the party. But at this point in my life, I don’t care if I am asked to those parties.
One of the most profound experiences a child can face is the sting of bullying. As I watched the cool girls strut around the playground in their trendy penny loafers, I was filled with envy. My mother believed that loafers would lead to fallen arches, so I was challenged to wear clunky tie Hush Puppies throughout middle school. While my classmates proudly showcased their trendy lunch boxes featuring the latest pop culture icons, I carried a simple cheese sandwich tucked in a worn Lord & Taylor bag, its original purpose having been to hold crisp bed sheets. That bag felt like a beacon of my social status, or more accurately, the lack thereof. And then there were my Coke bottle glasses, their thick lenses framed in glimmering blue rhinestones. While they allowed me to see the chalkboard, they also sent out a clear message to the mean girls: “Here I am, a prime target for your ridicule.”
Like many of us, I thought those memories were safely locked away in a school yearbook, but in 2025, they came back with a vengeance. Our administration, led by the President of the United States, has engaged in a full-throttle bullying campaign. The worst part is the complicity of those around him. He has built a team of individuals who were probably bullied in high school, spending a significant part of their days stuffed into a locker. They desperately want to be part of the in-crowd. When the pressure to follow their moral compass arises, they cower in the corner, fearing the familiar feeling of being ostracized.
What I didn’t realize was that when you are bullied, you develop a sense of empathy, and like fine wine, it improves over time. This gives you the courage to speak up even when those around you are afraid. I will not stop speaking up, and my hope is that my once bullied teenagers join me in the fight for our nation.
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