Zimbabwe: Speaking up- a game changer

My name is Kelly, a girl from the small mining town of Zvishavane in Zimbabwe. This is the story of how speaking up changed my life and the lives of many others who silently carried the pain of bullying. Growing up with slightly bluish eyes may sound like a harmless genetic detail, yet it became the source of torment that nearly destroyed me. At my previous school, the name calling was constant, but at my new school, Kimberley High, the bullying became unbearable. I was labelled a Satanist, a witch, the girl who “flew over the school in a basket and knocked down power lines.” Every bad test score, every strange weather change, every misfortune somehow, it was all my fault.  

I felt like an outcast. My grades fell. I withdrew from everyone, sinking deeper into isolation. At my lowest point, even suicide felt like an option. I knew I needed help, but I also knew I wasn’t alone many others carried their pain in silence. Some were even the same learners who bullied me, hiding their own wounds behind hostility. Deep down, I could see they were hurting too. 

What makes my school unique is that I became the first learner to get justice for bullying because someone finally listened. That person was Zandile, the Junior Councilor of our school. The turning point came on a warm Friday morning. I was buying my favorite burger when the usual happened everyone scattered the moment they saw “the witch.” Everyone except Zandile. She stood firm, calm and gentle the kind of person whose presence feels like still water after a storm. 

She smiled at me, and for the first time in months, someone saw me as human. We talked. I opened up. And then I made the boldest decision of my life I asked to tell my story at assembly. When the day came, my heart thundered in my chest. My skin felt like it was burning. But I stood there and spoke. I cried. I told the truth about bullying its pain, its scars, and its consequences. Something incredible happened the whole school listened. 

Learners opened up about their own struggles. Some spoke of bullying at home, others at school. Some cried openly. Many apologized to me, to others, even to themselves. Teachers stepped in. Guidance and counselling sessions were held. Safe spaces were created. For the first time, students who had suffered in silence found the courage to speak. That day broke down walls not only in me, but across the whole school. The transformation was driven by awareness campaigns, peer engagement, counselling sessions and schoolwide conversations that created openness and healing. 

Guidance and counselling became more consistent. Learners felt comfortable expressing themselves, and counsellors listened without judgement. Victims of bullying realized they were not alone. Perpetrators also received counselling, helping teachers understand that some bullies were reacting to their own hidden pain. Assemblies became platforms for education. Teachers and learners spoke openly about bullying its dangers, emotional impact and long term effects. The culture of silence began to break. Students who once hid their struggles started speaking up and supporting others. 

Chakandinakira Munashe, Zimbabwe

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