Earlier this week, 9-year-old school boy Quaden Bayles from Queensland, Australia, was picked up from school in tears. He had just been bullied in school for his disability, a type of dwarfism known as achondroplasia.
Heartbreaking Effects of Bullying
In a distressing video shared by his mom, Yarraka Bayles, Quaden is heard saying that he wanted to kill himself. She said she chose to share the video publicly to raise the awareness of the consequences of bullying with others.
At the start of the heartbreaking video, she said, “I just picked my son up from school, witnessed a bullying episode, rang the principal and I want people to know – parents, educators, teachers – this is the effect bullying has. This is what bullying does. So, can you please educate your children, your families, your friends, because all it takes is for one more instant … and you wonder why kids are killing themselves?”
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Any parent watching the video would feel their heart tearing apart.
The video has received 16 million views since it was posted on Tuesday, 18 February 2020.
Let’s be Kind to Each Other
Since then, different people, including celebrities and personalities, have come out with messages of support for Quaden.
These include a message from fellow Aussie, Hugh Jackman, who said, “Quaden, you are stronger than you know, mate. And, no matter what, you’ve got a friend in me.”
To everyone else, he had this message, “Everyone, let’s please be kind to each other. Bullying is not okay. Period. Life is hard enough. Let’s just remember, every person in front of us is facing some kind of battle. So let’s just be kind.”
Quaden – you’ve got a friend in me. #BeKind @LokelaniHiga https://t.co/8dr3j2z8Sy pic.twitter.com/jyqtZYC953
— Hugh Jackman (@RealHughJackman) February 20, 2020
For every child who has ever been bullied, we hope that this message comes through clearly.
