Image Poem

Out Our Classroom Window

Behind the school against the fence

A crisp breeze through green leaves

Entangled limbs and tousled vines

Dusted in a hint of sunlight

What should the punishment be for acts of cyber-bullying?

Cyber-bullying should be handled and dealt with in the same manner as public bullying. Just as a written threat would lead to persecution, an insulting and degrading instant message should be held to the same light. Virtual harassment is nearly identical to its real world counterpart, who's scale of punishment, depending on the level of the violation, ranges from suspensions, for students, to even jail time. The culprits of these crimes need to be charged just as a citizen, who at the very least had the decency to do so without the shield of a luminescent screen, out in the public domain. Some completely disregard the acts of harassment and verbal abuse inflicted by the culprit, suggesting that the lack of physical involvement voids the culprit's words, insisting that the victim should just turn off their phone or block the assailant, as if  deeming it alright due to it not being said face to face. Cyber-bullying tends to not stay cyber, the smaller situation of a single person committing a crime, to entire high-schools becoming guilty by association. In conclusion, cyber-bullying can cause just as much distress and anxiety as bullying does offline, words are still words despite how they are received, so the charge should be the same despite how it was incited.