A 12-year-old boy has become an internet sensation for creating a video on anti-bullying. Jonah Maxwell posted his work on YouTube on Aug. 21 and didn't expect it would rake in half a million views in a week. Many have commended the seventh-grade student for his work.
The anti-bullying video, entitled "The Bully," was not even a school project, but Jonah Maxwell decided to carry on with it by writing and conceptualizing the story for seven months before it went live on YouTube. The young boy said that he drew the ideas from his experience, saying he had been bullied in elementary school, per Independent.
Jonah came from Dublin before moving to Chicago with his family when he was around 7-years-old. He was often teased for his Irish accent, which he now recalls with a candid after-thought. But the 12-year-old thinks that with social media increasing the likelihood of bullying, he wanted to get the message across that this is not okay. So, the idea to come up with the anti-bullying video was hatched. "If it's happening to you, you have to tell someone," his voice can be heard narrating in the clip.
Daily Herald reports that Jonah Maxwell's friends and classmates also helped him come up with ideas for the anti-bullying video based on their experiences. Some of them were surprisingly willing to open up about being bullied. Jonah's father, Dave Maxwell, told the news outlet that this was a personal project for their son, which they supported by providing him the software and equipment he needed.
KC Chronicle reports that Jonah Maxwell was both "shocked and excited" with the public's response of his anti-bullying video.The 12-year-old, who dreams of becoming a documentary filmmaker when he's older, is in the process of editing another personal project. His teachers and classmates are reportedly in this new video as well. Watch Jonah Maxwell's "The Bully" below.
