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The Pop Culture Hero Coalition Brings Bullying To Light At C2E2

PCHC Panel Pic (1)Alex Roberts writes,

Social media, gaming, and other technologies have brought bullying from the playground to our Facebooks, phones, and consoles. How do we navigate these new treacherous waters? The Pop Culture Hero Coalition came to C2E2 to help us understand how to identify, confront, and overcome bullying- specifically in the areas of comics and cosplay.

The Pop Culture Hero Coalition was founded by actress Chase Masterson of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine in 2013 to help bring an end to the culture of bullying. Representing this non-profit was panel moderator Carrie Goldman, the co-founder of the Coalition. Joining Carrie were panelists Katie Schenkel (The Mary Sue), Ming Chen (Comic Book Men), Amy Chu (Poison Ivy), Ernest Coverson (Amnesty International USA), and Dr. Kortney Peagram (Bulldog Solutions).

Topics for the panel ranged from educational training to controversies such as GamerGate, but it was the personal stories that captivated us in the audience. With panelists recounting their stories of being bullied as a child straight up to modern day workplace bullying, some audience members were moved to recount their own personal stories.

Ming Chen offered his humorous take on how to handle bullies.

"When I was growing up, I was much smaller than everyone else and I grew up in a predominantly Caucasian community, and I would get picked on."

And how did he handle it?

"I told the bullies my uncle was Bruce Lee. Never mind that Bruce Lee had been dead for 10 years."

Amy Chu recounted her tale of suing her high school after she was bullied for joining the boys' soccer team and immediately being discriminated against by everyone from fellow soccer players to rival coaches. Chu's was a particularly rewarding tale, but one that shows how time is an essential part of the healing process for all parties. Chu described her experience with the lawsuit by saying, "I sued the school and won and no one wanted to talk to me." It wasn't until years later, at her high school reunion, that Chu was praised for having stood up for herself and paving the way for the now Championship-winning girls' soccer team.

Ernest Coverson provided a macro-based approach to understanding bullying. With his work at Amnesty International, Coverson is very familiar with how the political process works and how pressure can be placed on our leaders to enact the human rights changes we need. Coverson described bullying as "misusing power," a very accurate depiction of bullying that we don't often consider,

"Many folks don't see the fight against the LGBT community or women around the world as a bullying situation."

This is a particularly true sentiment, as we often think of bullying as in the classroom or a particularly venomous message delivered from behind the veil of anonymity the internet offers. After citing France's relatively recent decision to ban the Muslim hajib, Coverson reframed bullying as people with power lashing out at others. "It comes from not only the power base, but from fear."

Overall, the panel was very education focused and provided the audience with a better perspective and a list of tools to combat bullying. A focus on restorative justice, de-escalation, and offering support to victims were the tools of choice offered to those who want to make a stand against bullying.

By showing us an overwhelmingly cute video of her daughter describing a situation in which she stood for a bullied classmate, Kari Goldman showed us that even the youngest among us can understand the importance of ending this bullying culture. The answer isn't in escalating the situation or turning it on the bullies, but removing the power from them. As Goldman told us,

"You have the ability and right to dislike someone, but you don't have the right to go out of your way to let them know it."


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Rich JohnstonAbout Rich Johnston

Founder of Bleeding Cool. The longest-serving digital news reporter in the world, since 1992. Author of The Flying Friar, Holed Up, The Avengefuls, Doctor Who: Room With A Deja Vu, The Many Murders Of Miss Cranbourne, Chase Variant. Lives in South-West London, works from Blacks on Dean Street, shops at Piranha Comics. Father of two. Political cartoonist.
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