Open Books is very excited to welcome Zak Mucha, LCSW, therapist and author, to lead a workshop for our volunteers and those interested in better understanding bullying - its causes, effects, and how to intervene.

The workshop will be held on Thursday, February 21st, from 6 to 7:30pm at the Open Books Literacy Center, 213 W Institute Place, Suite 207.

To RSVP, email volunteer@open-books.org. RSVP is required. We are currently building our wait list, so please let us know if you are interested and we will keep you posted as space opens up!

About the workshop:

Bullying is not merely an issue for children or adolescents, but early interventions can minimize or eliminate later susceptibility to physical or emotional abuse. Adults working with children and adolescents have the opportunity to disrupt the aggressor/target dynamic before it becomes calcified. We can tell children “it gets better” as long as we also provide the tools needed to make it better. These tools are not a simple “kit” or a list of bullet points, but are the first, and always individualized, steps in emotional self-defense.

Physical bullying may diminish over a lifetime, but emotional bullying can continue throughout adulthood – in the workplace, social settings, intimate relationships, and among family dynamics. The behavior of both aggressors and targets can be repeated throughout the lifespan, creating damaged and damaging cycles of behavior.

Those targeted by physical or emotional abuse already possess the empathy needed to not hurt others. They must also be taught the steps of recognizing aggression, identifying their own pain, and determining the cost of challenging the aggressors in order to stop the bullying. As adult caretakers, we are to model behavior and provide a safe space for learning. This responsibility may provide the only respite for a child and may provide the best opportunity for that child to realize his or her own needs and values.

If our culture continues to acquiesce to the demands of the aggressors – by denying our empathy can coexist with our own self-defense – we diminish our own potential, as individuals and as a society.

Objectives:

By the end of the workshop, participants will be able to:

1.    Define and identify examples of psychological/emotional bullying.

2.    Develop skills needed to recognize the aggressor/target dynamic in relationships.

3.    Develop a range of responses to address physical and emotional bullying in the classroom and the community.