I absolutely hated my junior high school years. They were the worst years of my life.
While I never was pushed to the point of considering suicide or retaliation, that was one of the major factors in our decision to homeschool, and I also determined that if my kids ever wanted to go to public school, it would be only from 9th grade on.
It seems like everyone is blaming the victim. I understand that some people can beat up a bully and have it stop, but not everyone can. Nor are the victim’s parents the ones to blame.
It seems that we need to hold the bullies and their parents accountable!
Yes - the victim and family can work on handling situations better, but we need to place blame where it truly belongs.
Comparisons to other bullies in life area meaningless. Bullies at work? Look for another place to work. Avoid those people, etc. It’s such a different situation when your world (as a kid/teen) is so small...