Amy Roloff, one of the stars of TLC’s Little People, Big World , is no stranger to bullying, which is why she is standing up against it. Amy recently shared a photo of herself wearing an orange shirt with the phrase, “create a world without bullying” to make a stand against this disturbing behavior.
Amy said she wore orange to commemorate Unity Day 2017, which was held on Wednesday, October 25. This year’s Unity Day theme is, “Together against bullying. United for kindness, acceptance, and inclusion.” The shirt is courtesy of PACER’s National Bullying Prevention Center .
Amy said that she wanted to show everyone who has ever been bullied that they don’t have to face it alone. Roloff said that, like her, she’s been a victim of bullying and that she believes that every person who had to go through such adversity is not alone.
“Be kind with your words and express them respectively – both ways – when you agree and disagree,” Amy said. “Help physically but don’t hurt another. We all can do this to make a difference!”
Little people like Amy are easy targets of bullying because of their short stature. The 53-year-old grandmother of two has a kind of dwarfism called Achondroplasia, which is the same with her son Zach. Her ex-husband Matt has Diastophic Dysplasia.
The rest of the Roloff family, particularly Jeremy, Molly Jo, and Jacob, are of average height. Amy’s daughters-in-law, Tori and Audrey, are also of average height. Zach and Tori’s son Jackson was diagnosed with the same type of dwarfism as his father and grandma Amy while Jeremy and Audrey previously stated that their daughter, Ember Jean, is not a little person .
As IBT reported, Zach previously mentioned to Amy before Jackson was born that he was worried that his son will be a victim of bullying . “What am I going to say?” asked Zach. “Oh yeah, I want a dwarf baby? I can’t wait for that kid to be bullied.”
A number of fans responded positively after Amy touched on the subject of bullying. A number of them agreed that bullying has no place in this world. Others related their own experiences with bullying.
One of her followers said that her grandson has been a victim of bullying for three years now. She also said that no one from the school and school district cared enough to help. Amy advised her to “keep pushing” those who can help her grandson and to use her experience to talk to people about the harm that bullying does.
Amy also responded to more of her followers. She told one that bullying is “very tough” but she just tries to help her children to believe in themselves. Amy said that consistency is the key. She said that regularly showing and telling her kids to believe in themselves helped them realize their worth and value despite what other people said to them.
Roloff admitted that she still experiences bullying and that it “still hurts even as an adult.” In fact, a number of Little People, Big World fans have bullied Amy in one way or another due to a variety of reasons.
Many of those who comment on Amy’s posts forget that she’s a person who can be affected with hurtful words thrown her way. In fact, one of the comments on her latest post seems to be calling Amy out for still using Roloff even after her divorce from Matt. Another fan defended Amy and said that changing back to the maiden name is rarely done in the United States. She also said that Amy “has been a Roloff for half of her life” and that she identifies with it.
Amy has also opened up to his boyfriend about bullying and its effect on their relationship. Amy admitted to Chris Marek that she’s worried that the reaction of people around them may have taken a toll on her boyfriend. Chris admitted that the attention, including a “few snickers,” affected him at first but they don’t bother him anymore.
Roloff encouraged her followers, especially those with experience with bullying, to visit the TLC website to check out its Give A Little TLC campaign. The campaign aims to empower the network’s viewers to help “make a difference in the lives of those in need.”
[Featured Image by Amy Roloff/ Instagram ]