Just because Andrew became Angela won't change a thing as far as the bullies are concerned. They will just turn their attention to the next few unfortunates. I was frequently bullied by a fellow in elementary school 60 years ago. The subject came up at our high school reunion. He had transferred to another elementary school, and by the time we were together in high school, we didn't interact. I knew that ha was an artist, and I remarked that one of the good things about him was his artistic talent. He replied what were the bad things? I said he had been rather rough on me at times. He apologised. Apparently, his older brother abused him when he was in grade school. I wonder who abused the brother.

Abusers create abusers. There is more often than not a chain of abuse. It has to be recognized and stopped. I'm certain, too, that there are times abusive behavior is learned in peer groups. The parents are not aware of what is going on. Maybe they are too busy doing other things. I'm thinking about the children who abused the lady on the bus. Where did they learn that behavior? Why didn't the parents do anything to create an environment where their children would learn that acting like that is not funny. It is reprehensible.

Moving away to a different city or school is something that Karin's characters often do. It does not solve the problem. Angela's mother needs to take some very firm measures so that the school is aware of what's going on and does something immediately to start correcting the problem. The curriculum needs to atack this matter.