Video of 5-Year-Old Sparks Bullying Concerns

By Randall Yip, Executive Editor

The Takeaways

• Bullying a young child based on race: A 5-year-old Chinese American child faced racist remarks from a white teenager at a middle school in Loudoun County, Virginia, causing widespread anger.
• Larger problem of racial harassment amongst young people: According to data from the American Psychological Association (2012) and Act to Change (2021), there has been an escalation in racial bullying, particularly affecting Asian American students who report facing higher instances of race-based harassment compared to other demographic groups.
• Response and emotional aftermath: The victim's relatives are exploring legal avenues and aim to push for actions that could stop similar events from happening again.

The Details:

A video purportedly uploaded by a middle school student appears to show a 5-year-old Chinese-American boy being subjected to racist remarks from a white middle-schooler as he fled toward the security of his house in Loudoun County, Virginia.

The parents of the preschooler learned about the incident when informed by another mother or father whose kid came across the footage on a chat application and relayed this information to their own guardians. These concerned adults then alerted the family of the affected child.

The middle school student can be heard saying "this tiny, brief ching chong bing bong over here."

"No, please don't hurt me, don't hurt me," the preschooler shrieks as he huddles in terror, shielding his face with a blanket.

As the harasser moves closer, he chases after his victim who flees to the edge of his family’s porch.

"Are you dilly-dallying and ping-ponging?" the older boy asks.

“Go eat your dumplings.”

We are posting the video At the behest of the 5-year-old's mom and dad.

This event highlights a bigger issue: the widespread nature of bullying amongst young people.

The American Psychological Association In conjunction with the Asian American Psychological Association’s report from 2012, it was highlighted that about 17% of Asian American students disclosed experiencing bullying. This percentage is lower compared to other racial groups. Nevertheless, a higher proportion of Asian Americans acknowledged facing bullying due to their ethnicity at 11.1%, which surpasses the rates for White individuals at 2.8%, Black individuals at 7.1%, and Latinx individuals at 6.2%.

A more current survey from 2021 by Act to Change A nonprofit organization focused on addressing the issue of bullying against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders reported a significant rise in such cases. According to their findings, 80% of the surveyed Asian American participants encountered instances of bullying. the group’s report.

"I'm terribly frightened of watching the video, yet I feel compelled to see it. My heart is shattered," stated the young boy's mother, Ashley Long, to The News Pulse.

She mentions that when shown the video, both she and the other parent were moved to tears during their embrace.

I could have never anticipated something like this occurring," stated Sean Yang, the preschooler's father. "That child continuously used racially offensive terms. He clearly understands various ways to demean a minority group.

The report of the incident has been submitted to both the Loudoun County Public School District and the County Sheriff’s Department.

We are acquainted with the circumstances," Dan Adams from the Loudoun County Public School District told The News Pulse. "We do not approve of this behavior and we are displeased.

Adams states that the school district has provided counseling services for the 5-year-old involved, along with arranging mediation sessions between both families. He chose not to comment on potential disciplinary actions against the individual responsible.

He mentioned that since the incident occurred outside of school grounds and during the weekend, the District has restricted options for how they can act.

The child's family first stated they would refuse the proposal, but subsequently mentioned they might reconsider.

Law enforcement has paid a visit to the family of the individual who bullied others; however, they haven’t specified what actions may follow. According to a statement from a representative for the sheriff’s office, due to the involvement of juveniles, further details cannot be disclosed at this time.

Long mentions that her son has not been himself since the event.

"He’s still somewhat afraid of older individuals. Whenever older children approach him, he becomes extremely frightened. He wonders whether they are good or bad and what actions they might take against him," she explained.

Yang expresses his disappointment that none of the other boys who saw what happened to his son came forward to support him.

Regarding the subsequent actions, he isn’t entirely certain about your plans but is contemplating taking legal measures.

We're continuing with our research. But what steps can we take? How can we ensure this doesn't occur again for anyone—not only those of Chinese descent—but everyone? We simply want to prevent anything negative from happening amongst the children. There shouldn't be any form of hate between them. That's my objective.

Act to Change has several Anti-bullying resources that you can locate here.

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The post Video featuring a 5-year-old sparks worries over bullying issues appeared first on The News Pulse .