When did kids become so evil?

When did kids become so evil? This morning, a trending news story that I was seeing all over my social media feeds was about a ten year old boy with special needs who had been lured into a field by bullies- who he believed were his friends- who then proceeded to douse him in gasoline and set him on fire. 

Yes, you read that correctly. A ten year old was set on fire by other ten year olds. 

Now let me tell you something. I didn't strike my first match until I was 16 years old, and when I was 10 I can guarantee that I had no clue what gasoline was. I might be a little be behind the times or babied or whatever else and maybe I should have known, but I didn't; but what I'm getting at here is why did these ten year olds have access to matches- and on top of that, access to gasoline too? Who made this available to them? And how did they know how to light a fire? And what the hell was going through their minds that made them think it was a normal thing to do to set a human being on fire? Not only do these kids evidently have something wrong with them but we need to seriously investigate the type of environment that they're being raised in. 

The worst thing of all is that this isn't an isolated incident. Just yesterday I read about a young boy who had taken his own life by stepping in front of a train because he couldn't deal with the years of abuse and bullying anymore. It's no exaggeration when I say that almost on a weekly basis I read a story about a young child who has been left in critical condition or even taken their own life because of bullying- and yet still bullying isn't taken seriously by schools. 

I was bullied at school and one of my sisters was bullied at school and neither of us had the issue dealt with in an appropriate manner. Thankfully our level of bullying was nowhere near as bad as the stories you read about in the papers, otherwise our lives could be quite different now. I am just really struggling to get my head around how children can be so evil! 

When I was ten, I was playing Nintendogs on my Nintendo, playing in the street with the kids across the road, going on bike rides with my sister and playing with toys. Violence wasn't even a part of my life. At school, we all got along. No one was brutally picked on, none of us were pushed to self harming, none of us killed ourselves. To be honest, I don't think any of us would have even known where to begin with it all should we have wanted to. 

Yet since my youngest sister was in primary school, she has been exposed to discussions and incidents surrounding self harm, suicide, violent bullying, fighting, abuse and eating disorders etc. She would tell me these things in our little chats, speaking of them lightly like they were totally normal things to speak about/witness- which to her, they were-, having absolutely no clue that when I was her age, these things were barely even a part of my vocabulary let alone a part of my life. 

It strikes me to ask not only about when did kids become so evil, but also, when did kids become so sad? 

When I was bullied, it made me cry. It made me sad that someone who had once been my friend was now nasty to me. But eventually I got over it. Self harm and suicide never even crossed my mind, and I can say with some confidence it was the same for other people I know who were bullied. Now, for kids, its a different story. They can't cope with just how aggressive bullying has become and often this leads to children as young as five self harming and killing themselves- five! 

Could it be the powerful presence of the media in children's lives? The use of social media? Could it be down to them watching explicit programs and films that they shouldn't be? Because somewhere, something has gone wrong. Somehow, kids are not only learning how to be truly evil and do things such as set their peers on fire but victims are learning how to end their life in ways that I wouldn't have even imagined when I was ten. 

It's evident, now more than ever, that something needs to be done. We can't keep allowing children to kill themselves at the hands of bullies- and we can't allow bullies to behave as they are. Bullying is something that should never be tolerated, and is something that should be nipped in the bud as quickly as possible. Little kids, they don't always want to talk about it in case they get in trouble. If you have a young child in your life, it's important to look out for signs that they could be being bullied. There is obvious signs, such as bruises or marks from physical bullying, but there are other signs too. Does the child seem withdrawn, quiet, subdued? Have they stopped taking an interest in something they were once incredibly passionate about? Do they dread going to school? Has their performance at school slipped? These are just some of the things to look out for.

I would love to think that one day we could live in a world free from bullying but to be honest, things just seem to be getting worse. My thoughts are with the poor little boy who was set on fire and now lies in hospital in an induced coma, in critical condition, fighting for his life. I will be praying for him and keeping him in my thoughts. 

My thoughts are also with everyone who has ever lost a child thanks to bullies, anyone who has been bullied or is being bullied right now. Its not easy but try to speak out, ask for help- only then will it begin to get better. 

When did kids become so evil? This is not a world I want to be a part of. 

Love from,

Florence Grace