Demi Lovato, along with stars from ABC Family, has teamed up with Seventeen to “delete digital drama” and put an end to bullies on and off the internet. Demi is one of many stars who have faced bullies and she wants to put a stop to it! “The effects … are still with me to this day,” she admits.
As a contributing editor for Seventeen, Demi opened up about her struggle with being a victim of bullying in the past. “I was bullied when I was younger, it got so bad that I ended up leaving school because of it and the effects of that traumatizing time are still with me to this day,” she revealed in her article. Demi is a pretty tough cookie and we are glad she has been able to overcome bullies, one step at a time.
Stars such as Shailene Woodley (Amy Juergens from The Secret Life of the American Teenager) and Tyler Blackburn(Caleb Rivers from Pretty Little Liars) have joined their fellow ABC Family costars to promote the fight against bullying with their “delete digital drama” campaign.
Shailene said, “All it takes is to speak up, to say something. All it takes is to find that strength within yourself, to be the one to say something, to tell someone about it, to tell a teacher, tell a parent, to tell another peer—somebody—what’s going on.”
With young stars reaching out to their fans and the new film, Cyberbullying that just premiered on ABC Family, kids can see that their idols were bullied and overcame it so they can too! What powerful role models, we love them all!
Tyler said, “I think that the social media aspect of bullying is different because it spreads like wildfire immediately. So in that way, I think it’s almost more intense. But it’s just as hurtful as bullying someone face-to-face.”
Cyberbullying is a huge problem in the digital age and it is about time that someone did something about it. Go Seventeen and ABC Family!
“I think that some people use bullying as a way to fit in, and I’ve noticed it’s not just the “cool” kids doing it anymore. Sitting behind a computer gives people a sense of anonymity, but everyone needs to realize that words—even the ones they write online—have a strong power to hurt people” said Demi.
Wow, so true, words can totally hurt and even though we poke fun at bullies in films such as Mean Girls, bullying is a really serious issue. We are so proud of Demi for speaking up and her efforts for this cause are not lost on us. She is a rock star and we love that she cares about others!