Nothing at All

In this day and age, it's hard to believe that there are still four states, incredibly, that has NO anti-bullying law on their books whatsoever!!  There's nothing in place to protect the most vulnerable ones.  Those states would be Michigan (big surprise there), Montana, North, and South Dakota.

Michigan, you may recall, was the state that tried to pass an anti-bullying bill with a clause in it that would've given a free pass to those who bullied because of "sincere moral and/or religious beliefs".  And, if that was your first time reading about that, fear not:  we banded together, got a petition signed by tens of thousands, and had THAT clause taken out of the bill. (They don't get to legally bully in the name of God)  Michigan is also the state where the mayor of one of their cities, Troy to be exact, admitted to making gay slurs on her facebook page.  Apparently, the hearts of the legislators are as cold as Michigan's weather.

And, as for the Dakotas and Montana, possibly the thinking is that there just isn't a large enough population to warrant such measures. (the CITY of San Francisco has a larger population that the STATE of N. Dakota!)  Just thinking out loud.  Maybe that isn't that at all.  Maybe they just don't care.  I don't know the answer.  What I do know is that if having anti-bullying laws in place will help even one person, there's a need for them to be on the books.

(UPDATE)


Of the four states I just mentioned, only South Dakota remains as the only one with no laws in place whatsoever.  North Dakota has just passed their and requires their schools to have policies in place by June 2012.  Montana has a very vague "referral" program in place.  And, Michigan, ah yes Michigan.  If you are interested in the anti-bullying laws in your state, and I think everyone should be, here's an interactive map with that information.