Stop Kids from Killing Themselves

The bullying epidemic in our nations’ schools demands a solution before any more lives are lost.

Sloan Oliver | March 25, 2026

Last month, 12-year-old Ava Little committed suicide.  Apparently, she did so because she was being chronically bullied at Byron Middle School, Peach County, Ga.

According to Little’s family, none of the school’s anti-bullying measures or guidelines was implemented, even as “other students targeted her over and over again.”  The bullying began in fifth grade and intensified this year.  According to Paige Day, Ava’s aunt, her parent’s tried to get the school to intervene, but Peach schools were “consistently underwhelming.  They failed her 100%.”

The Youth Peace and Justice Foundation — an organization dedicated to ending cycles of violence among youth — is calling for a full review of Peach County Schools’ bullying policy.  They are calling for the Georgia Board of Education to review bullying prevention and student mental health intervention policies for Byron Middle School and the district.  They claim that what happened to Ava is not an isolated incident and that systemic change is needed across the school district.

According to Brandy Little, Ava’s mother, last week, another Peach County middle-school girl, and a friend of Ava, tried to commit suicide.  Fortunately, she failed.  I will echo Brandy’s questions and ask what actions are being taken to address the bullying in Peach County schools.  Are the ones who bullied Ava still at it, bullying others?  Is anyone being held accountable?  There are always several sides to an issue, even a suicide.  However, the fact remains that a beautiful little girl is dead, and we are left to ask why. 

Suicide contagion is the term used to describe “copycat suicide.”  According to psychologists, copycat suicides tend to be the same age and sex as the first suicide.  It’s thought that at least 5 percent of youth suicides fit in this category, often blamed on media and social attention given to the instigator.  Does that explain Ava’s friend’s attempt?

Why would anyone copy the actions of someone who just killed himself, especially after himself experiencing the grief of losing a close friend?  There are several reasons.  Young minds are not fully developed.  They are impulsive.  They see the outpouring of love and grief for the recently deceased and want that for themselves, failing to recognize the finality of their action.  However, if 5 percent, even 10 percent, of suicides are copycat suicides, that still leaves 90 percent who commit suicide for other reasons — depression, being bullied, and so on.

Bullying is a problem in schools.  If it’s happening in Peach County schools, it’s happening in every school district, public and private.  Technology only makes it worse.  How so?  Cell phones and social media allow bullies to torment their target 24/7, meaning on the school bus, at home, after dinner, just before going to bed, in the middle of the night, first thing in the morning, and on the weekends.  A group of bullies can keep taunting and mocking a vulnerable teen.  We’ve all been there and know what goes on in middle and high school.  At that age, every teen is vulnerable.

In the 1960s and ’70s in Wisconsin (where I went to high school), the legal age for tobacco was sixteen.  Some states (North Carolina and other tobacco-growing states) had no tobacco age restrictions.  Alcohol was similar: In some states, the drinking age was 18, in others 19, 20, or 21.  There were no laws requiring the use of seat belts or motorcycle helmets.

I remember, as a young child (ten years old), sitting on the tailgate of our station wagon as my father drove down the highway at 70mph.  Do that today, and you’ll be arrested for child endangerment.

Eventually, scientists learned that cigarettes are bad for our health, especially when it comes to youngsters, and so is alcohol.  And there’s no telling how many kids were killed when they were bounced off the tailgate or because they weren’t wearing a seatbelt or helmet.  Many activities that were once legal are now illegal.  Why?  Because society recognizes that some activities are dangerous, or addictive, and we must be protected from ourselves — especially teens, who are not mature enough (their brains are still developing) to understand the consequences of their actions.

That takes me to the use of cell phones and social media and the dangers they pose, especially to teenagers.  Cell phones are addictive because of the compulsive, “reward-driven relationship” they cause.  Children are glued to them like white on rice.  If you know a teen (or young adult) with a cell phone, you are well aware of this truth.  They crave the dopamine pleasures of their social media likes.  Being taunted and mocked create the exact opposite: depression and extreme lows.

We know this, and psychologists know this.  So why are adults allowing young, impressionable, immature teens to engage in these addictive behaviors?  If I were raising children today, there’s no way I’d allow my child to have a cell phone or social media account until he turned 16.  I’m leaning toward 18.

Fortunately, Georgia’s General Assembly has taken steps to address these issues.  In 2025, the General Assembly passed HB-340, the Distraction-Free Education Act.  The act, which goes into effect July 1, 2026, bans students in K–8 public schools from having access to personal electronic devices such as cell phones, smartwatches, and tablets during the school day.  The law’s purpose is to “promote positive learning free from electronic distractions.”  Taking the next logical step, HB-1009, passed this session by the House, extends the same ban to high schools.

Now Georgia’s Senate must pass HB-1009, and private schools should echo these bans of electronic devices.  Also, just as cigarettes were once legal for teenagers but are now illegal, parents could use these House bills as their excuse to do the same for cell phones and social media, and prevent their children from using them.  If so, parents might actually have their kids conversing with them again.

Returning to teen suicides, Representative Tangie Herring (D-Macon, District-145) introduced HB-1045, the You Are Not Alone Awareness Act, which requires public schools to print 9-8-8 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline number on the back of student ID badges for grades 6–12, beginning July 1, 2026.  The bill seeks to provide a “direct, stigma-free” means for students to access help 24/7 during a mental health crisis.  The bill unanimously passed the House, 168-0, proving that Repubs and Dems can work together.  Herring said, “Years from now, I may not remember every speech I gave or every vote I cast.  But somewhere in Georgia, a child may still be alive because we chose to act.  And that will always matter.”

Let’s pray that these House bills and parental guidance help address the issue of teen suicide.  Schools must do their part, too: Identify any bullies, and give lengthy suspensions, if not expulsions.

Image: f_a_r_e_w_e_l_l via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0 (cropped).

SUPPORT AMERICAN THINKER

Now more than ever, the ability to speak our minds is crucial to the republic we cherish. If what you see on American Thinker resonates with you, please consider supporting our work with a donation of as much or as little as you can give. Every dollar contributed helps us pay our staff and keep our ideas heard and our voices strong. Thank you.

© American Thinker