Video Footage of Chicago Beating Prompts Online Anti-Bullying Campaign

Explosive campaign on Change.org calls for effective anti-bullying education and the prosecution of seven Chicago teenagers who filmed themselves beating and robbing an Asian student, then posted the video online.

More than 15,000 people have joined a popular campaign on Change.org calling on Chicago Public Schools to improve their anti-bullying policy after video of a teenager being beaten by his peers went viral online.

Timothy Hwang, who runs a youth advocacy organization called the National Youth Association, launched the campaign on Change.org after video footage showing the violent attack went viral on the internet earlier this week. The video was taken down by YouTube but has been viewed more than 800,000 times on the World Star Hip Hop site.

“This video shows an extreme example of a young person being senselessly attacked,” said Timothy Hwang, who launched the campaign on Change.org. “Actions needs to be taken to ensure that incidents like this don’t happen again. Young people who engage in this type of bullying and violence need to learn about the impact their actions have on others.”

Hwang’s petition asks Chicago Public Schools to involve students in developing anti-bullying policies in order to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future.

John Lechuga, the Chicago Director for the National Youth Association, says the petition will raise awareness of the need for youth to be involved in discussions around bullying policies.

“This is a petition about maintaining safe communities in Chicago and beyond,” Lechuga said. “Chicago schools have an opportunity here to bring young people to the table and set an example for other cities to follow when it comes to ending bullying in schools.”

News of the online petition campaign’s success is likely to increase pressure pressure on the Chicago Public Schools to act. Within hours of the campaign’s launch, Hwang had recruited thousands of supporters on Change.org, the world’s fastest growing platform for social change.

“What Timothy Hwang has accomplished in just a few days is remarkable,” said Change.org Senior Organizer Jonathan Perri. “This is one of the fastest growing campaigns on Change.org, and it’s raising awareness about bullying and violence in our schools. Change.org is about empowering anyone, anywhere to demand action on the issues that matter to them, and it has been incredible to watch Timothy Hwang’s campaign take off.”

Live signature totals from Tim Hwang’s campaign:
http://www.change.org/petitions/helpless-asian-student-attacked-and-jumped