On September 12, the Revolution Tour held two assemblies at Carlsbad High. Their goal was to bring light to the issue of bullying and inspire students to change their behavior and seek help if they need it.

Originating in New Zealand 12 years ago, the group visits schools around the world in order to promote change. They decided to focus on bullying because it was the main issue facing schools in New Zealand around the time the group started, according to Revolution Tour member Esther Greenwood.

“Schools didn’t know how to approach it, the health programs would educate around bullying,”Greenwood said. “But sometimes teenagers listen better to people that aren’t their teachers or their parents.”

The methods of the Revolution Tour are indeed different than the ones often seen at home and in the classroom. The assembly at CHS included much singing and dancing. There were even competitions and prizes to help engage students, so that they would be more comfortable with interactions.

“[The music] makes us very relatable and very relevant to young people,” Greenwood said. “It builds a great rapport.” The tour aims to interest students and gain their trust with some fun before getting into the heavier side of the assembly.

The group originally branched off from a church program, where the youth wanted to make a change, according to Greenwood. This youth on youth program created a greater platform for Revolution’s message. The relevancy of bullying led to Revolution’s widespread tour. Revolution has been to over 150 in New Zealand, to raise awareness of bullying.

“I want to give positive hope to people who are getting bullied, but also to reach those who are doing the bullying,” Greenwood said. “We want to equip them with ways to change as well. We don’t want to say that bullies are villains, we instead want to give them the tools to change.”

This type of change will be promoted at another 42 schools just this week, with hopes of making a difference in the lives of bullies, victims and bystanders alike.

“We want to empower bystanders to be active and to do something about it,” Greenwood said.

The impacts of Revolution have created immediacy in change, as students apologized to one another after the assembly.

“We want young people to be the change, whatever that may look like,” Greenwood said

With student lives at stake, the program continued, because there were so many isolated cases of students contemplating suicide, according to Greenwood. The momentum for Revolution has been steady as they have been influenced by multiple students. The various students that have spoken to Revolution to express their emotions and thoughts are why the revolution isn’t over.

“It makes a difference, even just for one person” Greenwood said.