The Phillie Phanatic welcomed more than 50 city school kids and their families May 31 to the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office.
Blue and gold star balloons and stringed lights festooned the room. It was a celebration for elementary and middle schoolers who had earned “DA Dollars” for stopping a bully or a fight or otherwise being a Good Samaritan.
The event represented the culmination of the third year that District Attorney R. Seth Williams has run the Champions of Change Anti-Bullying Campaign. Throughout the year, Williams visits Philadelphia schools to talk about how students can respect their peers. Each event covers a litany of reasons why someone might get bullied and what kids can do if they experience it.
“We talk about LGBT students, and sometimes students will bring it up themselves,” Williams told PGN before the event got underway. “We talk about respect for people regardless of sexual orientation.”
Williams said discussing bullying helps start the conversation about crime prevention.
“The number-one thing that people who get arrested in Philadelphia have in common is they dropped out of high school,” he said.
To the students, Williams quoted Frederick Douglass: “It is far easier to build strong children, than to repair broken men.”
Other public officials addressed the students at the event, including Philadelphia Police Commissioner Richard Ross and Philadelphia School District Superintendent Dr. William Hite.
Hite praised the students for looking out for each other and working to eliminate bullying at school.
“It’s not just an act of kindness,” he said. “It takes courage. It takes persistence. It takes wanting to create a great environment for your schools.”
