WWE celebrities visited Hope-Hill Elementary on February 4th, 2013, for Be a STAR rally against bullying. The Anti-Defamation League, which operates No Place for Hate, connected Be a STAR with Hope-Hill and co-sponsored this event. The students were ecstatic to meet the special guests and enlightened by their presentations regarding cyber-bullying, disrespecting others, name-calling, and more.
Be a STAR Rally participants included:
- Stephanie McMahon, Executive Vice President of Creative
- Diva Layla, WWE Professional Wrestler
- Kofi Kingston, WWE Professional Wrestler
- Hornswoggle, WWE Professional Wrestler
- Josh Mathews, WWE Announcer and Be a STAR Host
- Ben Cohen, Founder of The Ben Cohen Stand Up Foundation
“Being different is being great,” said Kofi Kingston, as he shared his experience of being bullied in his childhood. He told the students that people used to tease him by calling him Coffee rather than Kofi, and Hope-Hill students reacted by chanting Kofi Kingston’s name. Diva Layla discussed the difference between entertainment and reality by sharing her personal experience. Hornswoggle inspired the students by never letting his size hold him back from reaching his dream as a WWE professional wrestler.
“Hope-Hill has zero tolerance for bullying, and our goal is for Hope-Hill to be designated as a No Place for Hate school. We will achieve this by continually implementing programs such as the one today to highlight the need for anti-bullying, not only at our school, but for schools across the nation,” says Angela Fortson, Counselor at Hope-Hill. “The students are thrilled to meet all of the stars who visited Hope-Hill today, and we appreciate and applause their support for anti-bullying.”
100 tickets were given away to Hope-Hill students to attend the RAW Event at Phillips Arena.