Abstract

Is the United States a bully? This was the question posed to me as a presenter at a philosophy of education conference in Toronto not long ago. In my talk I did not mention the political landscape or, for that matter, the United States. But, the truth of the matter is that students, teachers, workers, bosses, spouses, and, yes, even countries often find themselves on one side or the other of the bullying equation. But, what is bullying and where does it fit in the democratic landscape? Along with defining bullying, discussing its many motivations, and suggesting a path forward, in this chapter I also argue that bullying is but one iteration of the eternally contentious case of the ‘other’.