Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) on Tuesday urged action to stop the “epidemic” of bullying in schools, touting a bill that would press school districts to adopt prevention programs.
“This is an epidemic, unless we deal with it we are going to have all kinds of problems down the road from these young people who can’t function, who can’t study,” said Casey on CNN’s “Starting Point.”
Casey last month re-introduced his Safe Schools Improvement Act, which would require school districts to specifically implement policies to prevent harassment and violence against students.
“The legislation that I have with Sen. [Mark] Kirk [(R-Ill.)] is one way to deal with it, is to say to school districts and states: you’ve got to have policies to prohibit it, you’ve got to have prevention programs, and you’ve got to make efforts to make sure parents and students know their rights,” he said.
His bill was first introduced in Congress last session, but stalled in committee.
Casey acknowledged that many schools around the country already have formal policies banning bullying, but said those efforts were “not enough” and “should be across the board.”
"I think it is worse today, the technology makes it worse. In the old days when I was growing up, if you were bullied at school and left the school, pretty much that was it until the next day," he said.
“Today it follows you home, you’re not only harassed online sometimes, over and over again and hour after hour, but you have an audience of people who are witnessing it and sometimes participating in it,” Casey added.
