Our news team today spoke to several SJCJC students about their experience with bullying. Courtney Menzies has this story.

Bullying is not an uncommon experience for student, whether at the primary, secondary or tertiary level. Most students have either endured, perpetrated, or witnessed acts of bullying.

Sometimes, that bullying becomes physical, and leads to medical emergencies, as in the case of Dominick Alvarado, who broke his hip after he was shoved by another student.

Though bullying isn't as prevalent in junior colleges and universities, those students carry the effects of what they experienced or witnessed. Many of them told us today about those experiences:

Student
"Like when I mi ina first form some students woulda come around the ask fih food ina wah plate and thing like that, bout and bout ina wah plate. And then like if you nuh give they the food then they woulda want get pan your case you know, I woulda that dah wah form a bullying because like I pay fih my food like why can't you pay for yours you know."

Student
"Students will buy lunch and they'll have like senior and 3rd and 4th formers, they dah the ones weh duh most a the bullying towards the first and second formers for their lunch, and whenever they would ask for lunch and the first and second formers Neva wah give they lunch then dah when the bullying start, like name calling, sometimes they physically ten your food, sometimes they woulda ask yoh fih money and if not then you know the physical bulling start to kick in."

Student
"My experience at EP York it was not really much of bullying like abuse. But more of like the metal struggles, where you know just a simple name calling like oh look at this idiot walking by or big head or something like that because at EP York you find many different people with disabilities or deformities. One of my good friends was disabled in the eyes as in he was blind, but no one bullied him but another kid which had like his head a little bit shaped differently, and they would take that against him like oh look at this fool he have a dent in his head or something like that."

Student
"I think that bullying isn't something that should be happening because you don't know what people are going through, and so bullying each other can cause mental health issues and so I just don't think that it is something that we should do."

Reporter:
"Have you ever experience bullying?"

Student
"When I went to primary school I did, am I live at Caye Caulker but it was addressed, I got bullied due to my weight when I was younger in primary school. I use to come home crying and my mom would always comfort me about it but I haven't experience it from since then."

And the effects of those events stay with these students years later:

Reporter:
"What's one of the worst cases you've seen?"

Student
"Suicide..."

Reporter:
"Due to bullying?"

Student
"Yes due to bullying."

Reporter:
"What impact did that have on you mentally?"

Student
"Ih mek I wonder like if dah mi me ina dah scenario or ina dah position deh, how I mih wah take it as well if I mih wah choose fih kill myself as well."

Student
"I haven't like seen a lot of bullying but I have experience it and it is like not nice, its hard to get over, especially like during your younger years like in high school and primary school. Sometimes people just say like try to defend yourself, but it depends pan the way u defend yourself so like seh if somebody tell u something and u tell them something back, but sometimes it ends up going to far and ends up becoming physical."

Student
"I got bullied on my physical appearance, things like my nose, my body, and as a young woman hearing those things growing up its detrimental to your mental health and it has longterm effects that can seriously affect you."

Student
"Ok so when I was younger in elementary school I would get bullied for physical appearance and stuff like that. And I think it's just a selfish thing that people cause they done realize how much hurt it can cause someone."

Student
"Honestly I do feel bad about bullying."

Reporter:
"Why?"

Student
"Because I believe that it could be harmful to other people to the point that they want commit suicide."

Reporter:
"Have you ever experience bullying or seen it happen to someone?"

Student
"Yes I've experience bullying first hand, and I've seen it happen to more than one person in my life."

And these students - and one parent - all believe that the culture of bullying needs to change.

Student
"I'm very disheartened by bullying and the consequences to that, like for example you just said that due to bullying a child broke his hip in the high school at SJC and that just upsets me so much."

Student
"Well my experience on bullying has been pretty vague honestly I don't really pay people mind, but bullying is something that should be wronged, it should be treated with very caution and precaution because people are not sensitive towards other people feelings these days they are very obnoxious and many people don't care especially young people, they don't care about what other are gong through, and when you come to school a mean everyone sees your and you look normal, and they just pick on somebody you know just waiting for a doormat."

Student
"At the end of the day you done know what people go through at home, and a smile a day can take a person a millions ways throughout the day. Those cases I think should be dealt with responsibly, and with fair justice."