People rarely admit to being bullies but this second-grader has taken an effort at amending his ways and the action is melting people’s hearts. “It’s not too late to change,” he says.
Cameron Thompson, a Tournament Hills Elementary student in Beaumont, California, was recently in trouble for teasing a boy who brought in a Barbie doll for show-and-tell in school. He teased him so much till he cried but Cameron says, that was not his intention.
After this incident, Cameron wrote an apology letter to his classmate. His mother too spoke to the parents of the boy expressing her regrets.
Cameron, however still felt bad for what he had done and wanted to know from his mom how to get the bad feeling he had go away. The solution was an anti-bully club.
“Since I was sad, I thought I could make it up to him and he could feel better and I could feel better, too,” Cameron said. This spring, Cameron launched a group with help from the boy he teased. They got 76 kids on the first day, which was beyond their expectations.
The school principal is happy since positive peer pressure has reduced bullying cases in the school. “We are so proud of Cameron and the work he has done to correct a wrong. When students talk to students, they’re at their level.” Callie Beitler said. Cameron’s family made a video reenacting the bullying episode. Cameron’s brother played the bullied boy on the video while Cameron used a voice-over to explain his actions. “I didn’t really understand a boy bringing a doll to school so I thought it was funny. I told some friends and I convinced them to come make fun of him with me. We all circled him and teased him,” Cameron says. “I struggle to make good choices sometimes.”
His parents started a Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/CameronsAntiBullyCampaign) to help spread the anti-bullying message. They also posted the video on YouTube and it has so far attracted thousands of views. The parents have been getting many comments from people impacted by the video.
Cameron and the boy he bullied are now friends who eat together and even play together during recess. His message to other kids is. “If somebody was bullying another person or teasing, I would say stop and that’s not funny and you should accept a person for who they are. It’s not too late to change.” [source: www.today.com]
