We've seen some shocking stories about bullying recently, from the 15-year-old disabled student who was violently assaulted to the 10-year-old girl who had to be put on suicide watch thanks to a cruel Instagram poll. Some bullies don't just give out the occasional wedgie or "stack" your locker so the books fall out when you open the door. They inflict physical and mental damage that has tragic consequences: One nine-year-old boy was bullied for being gay, and took his own life.
However, three teenagers in Independence, Missouri took bullying to a new level of vile. In a viral video posted to Facebook, they verbally and physically harass a young boy. The footage shows the boy on his knees, and the bullies yelling, "Kiss my feet!" They call him racial slurs - the N-word, despite the fact the boy appears to be white. Then, one of the bullies pulls out a gun and points it at the boy's head. After a horrifying, tense moment, he pulls the gun away, and another bully starts punching the boy.
To see the shocking incident for yourself, check out the video below:
Last Saturday, Emily Bridges noticed that her 13-year-old son came home with bruises. However, she didn't discover what happened until her other son showed her a video of the altercation. "I was hurt," Bridges told FOX 4 KC. "I was angry. I was crying. I was mad. I was upset because he didn’t defend himself." She added that her son is on the autism spectrum, and after the assault, the bullies stole his money.
On Monday, the mother went to the Independence Police Department to report the incident. However, the officer she spoke to did not appear to be concerned. "He just really said that they're minors," said Bridges. "There's not a lot that happens to them." (Yeah, just some teenagers aiming a gun at the head of a 13-year-old boy. No biggie. What the hell, independence?) But the outraged mom didn't give up. On Tuesday, she returned to the police department and demanded someone take responsibility.
Taking to Facebook to share the video of the incident, the understandably furious mother wrote:
"CALLING ALL PARENTS, FRIENDS, FAMILY N AMERICAN CITIZENS.. this is my 13 yr old nephew being bullied at gunpoint in broad daylight... his mother took this video to the independence, mo. police n they have refused to do anything.. October is bullying prevention month n this is what we get from our "Law enforcement"... protect and serve who exactly.. share this w everyone n every media outlet till we get justice... derrin is a sweet kid with disabilities n did not deserve to be treated this way, threatened or to be dismissed by authorities.. this is a direct threat n violation to his safety n human rights... n something must be done!!!! [sic]
#JusticeForDerrin"
On Tuesday, 17-year-old Alexander Schrader turned himself into authorities. Two other juvenile suspects were brought into custody, but since they are minors, their names were not released.
This is the moment one angry dad decided to teach his daughter's bullies a lesson himself:
Bridges thanked the community for their support, saying, "I hope the other kids see this and see that those actions and those behaviors are not OK." Well, she's certainly reached a big audience: The viral video has been viewed over 200,000 times on Facebook, with reposts circulating on social media and national news outlets.
Pictured below is Schrader handing himself into authorities.
The video shows how frightening bullying has gotten, and hopefully the 13-year-old will recover from this traumatic experience. Also, what is are those teenagers doing with a gun? It's clear from their reckless actions that they have no business handling a gun. Had the firearm discharged, this disturbing incident could have become the latest national tragedy.
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