Rocking and Rolling Bullying Out of Style

How many popular songs do you hear on the radio are about being strong? About overcoming your problems, no matter what other people think? Independence? Self-confidence? There are hundreds that can change a bullying victim’s point of view. Skyscraper by Demi Lovato, Born This Way by Lady Gaga, and Firework by Katy Perry; the list goes on. Did you know that there are so many musicians now who were bullied as kids? Miley Cyrus, Justin Bieber, Christina Aguliera, and Demi Lovato, especially, were bullied horrendously as kids.

“I think that years of abuse in school and so many things were said to me that haunted me every day and I went from having all these friends to none and that’s the effect that bullying can have on you,” said Demi Lovato. She left school as a teenager because the torment got so terrible. After going through a recent breakdown, Demi Lovato returned stronger than ever, releasing “Skyscraper”, a song that puts forth the concept of not letting anyone bring you down. “Go on and try to tear me down, I will be rising from the ground like a skyscraper.”

Lady Gaga has just announced that she will be starting an anti-bullying campaign called “Born Brave Bus”, which is a three-hour session in a bus before her concerts in March. It will be open to people under 25 who want to talk about their bullying and acceptance problems, with no judgment added. Also bullied as a child, Lady Gaga wants to “foster a more accepting society, where differences are embraced and individuality is celebrated.” 

By Emma Mueller

Bullying: Only at School?

This week, Biotech took part in No Name-Calling Week, an initiative started by the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network (GLSEN) to raise awareness about teen bullying all over the country. Every day, thousands of teens are bullied in school by their peers. However, not many people know that a lot of teens feel bullied not only in school, but also at home. Hundreds of teens feel victimized or bullied by their parents or other family members about their intelligence, social lives, and more. However, according to a recent study published in the journal Pediatrics, most of these teens who are bullied at home are bullied about their weight.

Most family members do not intentionally bully these teens. Most comments that parents make that bully their children are said with good intentions. They are only trying to help their children. Rebecca M. Puhl, the lead author of the study mentioned above, says that the majority of this bullying comes “in the form of verbal comments.” These verbal comments have a very wide range in nature. Some parents nag their children about eating too much, while others criticize their own weight and appearance, making their children feel more insecure about themselves.

Some teens also report feeling bullied by their parents after trying to talk to them about their problems with bullying in school. This happens when teens are bullied in school and then try to talk to their parents about it. Some parents disregard the issue, which makes their children feel neglected. Some parents tease their children for being “too sensitive”. Some parents also unintentionally bully their child by voicing the opinion that the child has a problem that needs to be fixed. This makes some teens feel even more flawed and inferior than they felt before.

Anti-bullying week has definitely made us all look inside ourselves and inspired us to take a stand against bullying everywhere.  

By: Anshul Agrawal

Taking Away the Mute Button

It is a common theme in many high school movies and novels. It is a situation that many educators and parents worry about. It is often a cause of depression amongst many teens. When pushed to the extreme, it often leads to horrific consequences. What is this horrible “it”? Bullying.

About 30% of teenagers in the United States have been involved in bullying, either as the bully or as a victim. Relatively, it may seem like a small percentage, but it isn’t. Thirty percent isn’t a small number when referring to the number of teenagers hurt emotionally or physically during their school lives. These students, who share the same rights of freedom of speech and free will, shouldn’t have to be silenced and marginalized because of their differences.

Over the past few years, the state and nation has taken initiative to increase awareness in bullying and harassment. This year, BTHS participated in its first “No-Name Calling Week”, an event brought together by the Students of Service Club, led by Mr. Brown.

Throughout the week, “dress-up days” were held to promote a certain aspect of unity and anti-bullying. The class with the most participation throughout the week would receive a pizza party. Monday’s theme was “Black Out Bullying”. Students wore black. Walking into the MPR, one could only a sea of black. BTHS was participating whole-heartedly. Even the staff seemed to be enjoying this activity. Tuesday’s theme was “Walk a Mile in Some Else’s Shoes”. It was an amusing sight to see both faculty and students walk around with two different types of shoes on. Wednesday brought in “You Can’t Take Your Words Back”, asking students to wear their shirts backwards. One junior decided to wear all his clothes backwards! Except for his shoes, though of course. Students wore mismatched clothing on “Appreciate Our Differences” Thursday. The school was a lot more colorful than when it was on Monday! Finally, Friday was “Unity Day”. BTHS overflowed with people wearing either BTHS clothes or the official school colors: black, silver/grey, or maroon.

After the total tallies, the junior class won the pizza party! It was a fun week full of fun activities like sitting with new people, signing pledges, and making posters. Hopefully the week long event made the different aspects of bullying and the importance of accepting differences more apparent to more people.

Stopping bullying means the same as turning off the mute button. We should all try to blockade this rise in harassment that people have previously ignored. This week has made it clear. The tape must be taken off the mouths. The festering wounds of hate should be treated. The mute button must be taken away. 

By NaYoung Yang

No Name-Calling Week at BTHS

A wise man once stated: “Bullying is not okay. Period.” Biotechnology High School is one of the many hundreds of schools across the country participating in “No Name Calling Week”, an important time that focuses on an increased level of respect for others. The goal of No Name Calling Week is to eliminate bulling and to avoid lowering the self-esteem of peers.

To further the movement against bullying, all students have been asked to participate in “dress-up” days. On Monday, students wore all black to “Black out Bullying.” Tuesday began with some laughs, as the theme was “Walk a Mile in Someone Else’s Shoes;” numerous people were walking around with two different shoes! “You Can’t Take Your Words Back” was Wednesday’s theme, so students at Biotech wore their shirts backwards!

Thursday’s theme was “Appreciate Our Differences.” Students have been instructed to wear mismatched clothing and to “mix it up” at lunch; the goal was to have as may people as possible sitting next to people they wouldn’t normally eat lunch with. The last day of “No Name Calling Week” is “Unity Day.” Everyone will wear Biotech clothes or colors. An anti-bullying pledge will be available for all to sign in the front lobby, showing individual commitment to completely eliminate bullying.

Did I mention that there was a prize? The grade that has the highest percentage of students participating in the “No Name Calling Week” dress-up days will win a pizza party! As of January 23^th, Biotech’s juniors are in the lead, with the freshman following close behind. It’s too soon to tell which grade will have the greatest amount of students who stand up to bullying.

When “No Name Calling Week” commences on January 25^th, we must not forget how important it is to support our peers. The end of the event does not mean the end of our goal to eliminate bullying. Biotech is currently taking steps to form an Anti-Bullying Team to continue to promote respect and kindness towards others. Remember: words can hurt. Take a moment to think about what you’re about to say before you say it because you can’t ever take your words back. 

By: Jenna Weingarten

¡Bienvenidos, Sra. Carbajal!

This year, Biotech has many new teachers. One of these teachers is Sra. Carbajal, who teaches Spanish I and Spanish II to the freshmen and sophomores. Prior to teaching at Biotech, Sra. Carbajal taught grades 1 through 10 at a charter school in Plainfield, NJ and a high school in Hillside, NJ, which is near Newark.

Sra. Carbajal started learning Spanish when she was in 8^th grade and continued studying the language throughout high school and college. She even spent a semester in college studying abroad in Spain. Sra. Carbajal enjoys her job at BTHS very much. When asked what her favorite part about working here is, she said that the students are motivated “to go above and beyond” what is asked of them. She likes that students here have more interest in their studies than she is used to seeing. She also comments that she does not see as many problems with student behavior here.

Sra. Carbajal keeps her students interested with fun activities. Some of these activities include projects like writing children’s stories and pretending to be real estate agents. She also keeps her classes entertained with videos of Spanish translations of popular songs like Katy Perry’s “Wide Awake” and Beyoncé’s “Irreplaceable.” And who can forget Señor Wooly, what with him being “muy, muy guapo”?

When asked about her opinion on the importance of learning Spanish, Sra. Carbajal says that being bilingual is an important skill to have because it makes you more marketable for any job, no matter what field you go into.

We are all happy to welcome Sra. Carbajal to our staff and wish her the best of luck in her years to come at BTHS. 

By Anshul Agrawal