Something dangerous is happening in our culture. Words once widely understood as inherently cruel are being revived, celebrated and defended. The New York Times recently documented the return of the R-word, a slur disability advocates fought for decades to remove from public life, and one that people in positions of power are now wielding again. The renewed embrace of this slur represents a microcosm of a larger cultural shift taking place across our nation right now. The recent online push to “Bring Back Bullying” is no longer a fringe joke, but an ideology that’s taking our nation by storm and putting real lives at risk.

What started as an online movement promoting the idea of bringing back bullying has now snaked its way from social media platforms into the school hallways, embracing violence and humiliation as tools to “toughen kids up.” As a mother who lost her child to bullying, I cannot stay silent as our culture is numbed to this violent rhetoric. This is not a joke or a trend, but a warning about who we are becoming as a nation. America is not suffering from a lack of toughness, but from a growing tolerance for cruelty.

The viral TikTok videos may look sarcastic, but their popularity reveals a dangerous comfort that’s seeping through our culture around cruelty. Comment sections are filled with adults claiming........

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