While sexual bullying happens to girls most often, it can often happen to young boys as well.

I'm a 37-year-old male, and I just wanted to say that while the sexual bullying happens to girls most often, it can often happen to young boys as well. When I was in 6th grade, I had to deal with a bullying situation. I had an upset stomach and left class with a pass to go to the bathroom. While I was in there, some boys came in and looked over the stall. They deduced since I was hiding myself and telling them to get out and go away, that I was masturbating. At 12 years old, I didn't even know what that word meant, but I soon found out. Within a few hours, it was all over the school that I was masturbating in the bathroom, and I was being shamed in the halls and playground, etc. That stupid rumor followed me until high school, when I was finally physically large enough and mature enough to defend myself. At 6'2", 185 lbs, people stopped bullying me, and if they mentioned it to me, I countered back. I was no longer the timid kid that would just take their bullying. I joined the wrestling team, played baseball, and had a pretty normal high school career. Years later, the kid who started the rumor in Jr. High randomly apologized to me without any prompting from me, so it was somewhat comforting to know that it was a black mark on his heart as well for all that time. I try to remember that when kids are being labeled "bully". He knew what he did was wrong, and maybe didn't foresee the consequences. I feel that the kids who are often doing the bullying are struggling with their own problems and either don't have coping mechanisms, or they have abusive home lives, etc. We need to remember that kids often do stupid things while they're learning to become adults, and I hope that we as a society don't become bullies ourselves by ruining the lives of otherwise good kids who make bad choices and then get labeled as bullies. - B