An 11-year-old Alpine student who says he has been bullied took to social media to share his story, and now thousands are watching his video and learning.
Quaylon Bryant's dad said he and his son didn't choose this fight, but after making the video and hearing about other people's pain, they're not fighting for change.
"I had to think of what words I was going to say before I did it," Quaylon said.
In the video, Quaylon spoke on social media about a personal hardship at school: "Bullying, cyber-bullying, has been a problem for me."
Just before sixth grade, Quaylon moved to Alpine. He said kids have been brutal.
"People have been making fun of me, making fun of my skin, the color of my skin, call me roasted marshmallow," he said in the video. "Teachers are nice. Just one thing that I was missing: Friendship. Friendship is nowhere found in that school."
Quaylon found the courage not to quit and to speak on camera -- not just for himself, but for other bullying victims as well.
"That's one of the reasons that I made the video, to show people that they're not alone," said Quaylon.
Quaylon's dad, who shares his name, said learning about what was going on with his son was "shocking" and "hard to describe."
Bryant said it was tough to let his son go on social media and open himself up to whatever comments would come in.
"That's what he said he wanted to do. As hard as it was for me to let him do that, I had to let him do that and express himself," Bryant said.
The video has been viewed nearly 25,000 times so far, and the comments have been overwhelmingly positive.
"Everybody wants change; it seems like to me. They want the change, they want the programs in place, it's now how we get that handled," said Bryant.
The Bryants say they have met with school district leaders in Alpine to work on policies for integrating new students and anti-bullying awareness.
