What you should know about Alex Boston and her fight to help protect kids from cyberbullying

Alex Boston is a fourteen-year-old student who was cyberbullied by her classmates and has filed one of the first cyberbullying lawsuits in Georgia.  Basically, some of Alex's classmates created a fake Facebook page about her and used it to bully her at school.  But because there is no bullying law that protects kids when they are not at school, Alex and her family have sued based on a defamation of character and infliction of emotional distress.  And they hope to hold the parents accountable because the parents are the ones providing the computers and internet service.

Pretending to be Alex on Facebook, her classmates would make racist and hurtful statements online.  When Alex showed up a school, her peers were really upset, and Alex went through a very difficult time.

Alex's lawyer said in a recent radio interview that she would like to see a new law in Georgia that would allow schools and juvenile courts the power to address cyberbullying.  Alex's motive is to change the reality for the next kid, and if she is successful, this lawsuit might go a long way to protecting kids.

The End of Cyberbullying Act was sponsored by six legislatures in Georgia, but it never made it out of the education committee.  Alex's father says the ultimate goal is to get a law passed, and one of the first steps is creating enough awareness that parents push for proposed legislation to at least get through committee where it can be reviewed and debated by the full legislature.  Often times, hearing testimony from kids who have experience bullying is critical to getting laws passed.  That was reason a law passed in Kentucky and the proposal never made it out of committee in Indiana.

Keep reading the PresBlog to find out what happens with Alex Boston and her fight to get a law passed in Georgia.  I'm getting really excited about the state pageant in June, and I'm really looking forward to the chance to talk to the judges about why we need a bullying law to protect our kids.  If we all take a stand and work together we can create communities full of Happy Kids and Safe Schools.