As 12-year-old Unique Devine Keemer sees it, bullying is a universal problem and it’s not just the bullied who need help.
The Calvert Middle School (CMS) seventh-grader, who lives in Port Republic, is hoping the entire Calvert County community joins the movement to thwart a plague that has been an unspoken aspect of society for centuries.
“We want to take the message as far as we can,” said Keemer, who is hosting her first annual Anti-Bullying Rally Saturday, March 3 from 5 – 7 p.m. at Black Belt Academy in the Fox Run Shopping Center, Prince Frederick. The event is being sponsored by an organization Keemer created using her initials—Universal Destination Kids (UDK). The group is dedicated to “helping kids around the world find their destination.”
“We want to take the message as far as we can,” said Keemer.
The March 3 event will include games, prizes and music plus a karate demonstration and confidence-building workshop.
Unique recalled seeing and experiencing bullying at CMS and believes in reaching out to the offender to eradicate the problem.
“I want to help the bully stop bullying,” she said, adding that a bad home environment, such as abuse, could be the trigger for aggressive actions in the schoolyard and other public places. “They might have been in a situation. They probably can’t get past their mistakes or what happened to them.”
With the help of her mother, Kim Bourne, Unique has written a song, “Don’t Be a Bully.” Unique sings the song in a video that was made outside CMS and has been posted on You Tube.
“I want to be a singer,” said Unique, who has performed at various events, including this year’s Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday breakfast in Chesapeake Beach.
As a student, Unique makes it a point to help those classmates who are threatened by their peers.
“When she sees people being trea
