No-Name Calling Week: January 21st-25th

The American culture has a long history of nourishing self-image. Our society values appearances, wealth and status. These values are reflected and expressed in our language. In many cases the prevalence of an idea in our society can be detected by the number of ways we have developed a way to describe it.

Consider name-calling and the common phrase, "sticks and stones may break my bones, but names will never hurt me." Can you think of an incident when this has simply not been accurate? Anything that may be different about us can be used as fuel for an insult causing doubt and unhappiness. The way we view ourselves and the world can be formed by the names we call each other.

The tendency to justify our opinions by insulting others is an issue that will be examined by schools nationwide this month as part of "No-Name Calling Week", Jan. 21-25, 2008. By taking a moment to observe how many ways you hear people putting down each other on a daily basis we can gain insight into who is being attacked and why. Often we do not realize the damage that can be done by our casual usage of derogatory terms. Think of a time when you have been called an insulting name and a one when you used one against someone else. What do you think were the reasons behind these actions? What was the outcome?

No Name-Calling Week, first held in 2004, aims to address the problem of name-calling in schools, and to provide educators with teaching tools and resources. Although the lesson plans, promotional items and anti-bullying resources are primarily aimed at fifth through eighth grade educators, the material is easily adaptable for any grade level or situation. Inspired by James Howe's young adult novel, "The Misfits", the No Name-Calling Week 2008 is made possible, in large part, by a generous grant from Cisco Systems. Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, Girl Scouts of the USA, the Children's Defense Fund, and the National Urban League are among the over 40 youth advocacy, human services and mental health partner organizations.