Bullying Victim to Speak to Middle School Students

Nadin Khoury, a teenager from Upper Darby, Pa., who on Jan. 11 of this year was brutalized by a half-dozen bullies, will share his story with students at Lawrence Middle School during three “anti-bully” assemblies being held at the school tomorrow afternoon, Thursday, Oct. 20.

Khoury was originally scheduled to speak at LMS on Oct. 3 as part of Lawrence Township’s observance of the “Week of Respect,” as the first full week of October is now annually known statewide under New Jersey’s “Anti-Bullying Bill of Rights.”

But Khoury’s appearance in Lawrence had to be postponed after he fell ill.

During the “Week of Respect,” Lawrence Township public schools held various instructional activities focusing on preventing harassment, intimidation or bullying.

A school district news release has this to say about Khoury’s visit tomorrow:

Khoury, 13 years old at the time of the incident, was brutally attacked by six bullies who took turns punching and kicking him, putting him upside down in a tree, and ultimately hanging him by his coat on a high metal fence.  Amid all this violence, Khoury’s attackers managed to capture the entire experience on video.  Later, one of them posted the video on YouTube.

Lawrence Middle School is bringing Khoury to the school in conjunction with White Light Productions. They hope that sharing his story will encourage other bullying victims to speak out and to show that they too can gain strength from their unfortunate experiences. 

Additionally Khoury has expressed his belief that some bullies do not even realize they have crossed the line and how much damage they have caused.

Khoury has brought his message to the White House and has appeared on The View as well as other TV programs.  Because of his experience, he has become friendly with the NFL Eagles’ DeSean Jackson who is also helping to bring attention to the message.

“We are excited to have Nadin Khoury visit our middle school students.  It takes courage to publicly speak about and use such a horrific, violent experience as a means to educate and empower other students to take a stand against bullying.   We are hopeful that Lawrence students will leave with the message that one voice can make a difference,” related Superintendent Crystal Lovell.