With the Legislature back in session, I have a citizen request that LD 1237, the anti-bullying bill, be re-introduced and passed into law.

Children are no longer thought of as “young adults” who should be “seen and not heard.” Children are like empty vessels that need to be filled with knowledge, understanding, love and compassion. They have inherited strengths and weaknesses of which they are not yet aware.

When damage is done to another person’s property, the perpetrator is libel and must pay. Where are the laws that protect the heart, the soul and the psyche?

The National Education Association estimates that hundreds of thousands of children miss school because they have been bullied. Some even commit suicide. Parents of children who are bullied suffer tremendous pain.

“Children should be taught to have a zero-tolerance policy to being harassed or seeing others mistreated, and to tell every adult they can find when it happens. We must teach kids that politeness is required, in person and on computer, and other people are as important as they are,” wrote Lane Filler, a member of the Newsday editorial board, in a column for that newspaper.

LD 1237 would establish a uniform policy throughout school systems in the state and would make clear to all that bullying will not be tolerated.

It is well known that the Christian Civic League convinced the leadership to put an end to LD 1237, which was all set to pass last session. There is nothing Christian about bullying, and why this group keeps insisting it is a God-given right is beyond me.

Nancy Willard is a resident of Woodstock.