Community Corner
WATCH: White House Notices When Boy, 11, Confronts Cyber Bullies
In a few days, boy went from being taunted about his weight to being celebrated for his courage by the White House.

An 11-year-old Michigan youth has a standing invitation to stop by the White House after a senior adviser viewed a heart-wrenching YouTube video in which he read some of the mean comments about his weight posted on some of his previous YouTube videos.
In the video he made with his dad’s help, Logan Fairbanks, of Hartford, read the hurtful comments, which he said he was seeing for the first time.
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He made the video for two reasons, he said: “... for me to encourage other people to not bully people online, and my second reason is to encourage other people that have been bullied to not let words hurt them.”
The comments are hard to hear.
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“It’s funny because he is fat.”
“He looks like such a stupid fatso.”
“His dad scared the gay right out of him.”
“Squeal, piggy, squeal.”
They went along that vein, becoming meaner and meaner, many of them laced with profanity.
“I hope that people don’t bully other people online anymore, and that this helps,” Logan said at the end of the video, visibly affected by the stinging insults. “And people that have been bullied: Don’t let these words affect you. They’re going to say some stuff ..., yeah, there’s going to be bad people in the world.”
Senior White House Adviser Valerie Jarrett saw the video and reached out to Logan and his father on social media:
“... You are stronger than anyone’s hurtful words. We could all learn something from you and your dad!,” she tweeted.
Later, she tweeted the invitation:
“If you’re ever in DC, pls stop by the @WhiteHouse and say hi. Logan may be a future occupant one day.”
The response on social media has been overwhelmingly positive, and Logan’s video has been covered by news organizations around the world. Even NASA took note and gave a shout-out to Logan under its Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter account: “We salute you!”
Josh Fairbanks, Logan’s dad, commented on YouTube that he initially had misgivings about the video.
“Logan asked me to do this,” he wrote. “As his dad I was very hesitant, but he insisted that if there was a chance it could help someone, then why not face his online bullies and try. I hope one day I have as much courage as he does.”
Josh Fairbanks was surprised the video reached the White House.
“Thank you so much for your kind words. I can’t believe our video has hit this close to the White House. We are in awe right now,” he tweeted in a reply to Jarrett.
The Fairbanks are considering an online crowdfunding campaign to establish an anti-cyber bullying non-profit, as well as raise money to finance a trip to Washington, DC, Josh Fairbanks tweeted on a flight to Los Angeles Sunday.
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