Graduate Goes Viral For Refusing To Shake Principals' Hands After They Did Nothing To Stop Her Being Bullied

For as often as U.S. schools declare that they will not tolerate bullying, maybe school systems need to be called out for not practicing what they preach.

TikToker Sarah Delaney recently caught her younger sister, a brand-new high school graduate, doing just that as she crossed the stage for her graduation. When her name was called, she gracefully stepped onto the stage and accepted her diploma before crossing to greet the school’s two principals and several other school officials.

Notably, as she approached the two principals, she waved their outreached hands away, refusing to exchange a handshake. She did, however, greet and share a handshake with the other officials who appeared after them, before stepping off the other end of the stage.

According to Delaney, her younger sister had been bullied throughout her high school experience, and her principals refused to help her, even when she reached out.

The text overlay of the video read:

“POV: Your baby sister was bullied all year and her principals did nothing to help, so she refused to shake their hands at her graduation.”

You can watch the video here:

Fellow TikTokers experienced a range of emotions from watching the video, all rooted in celebration.

Some rooted for the young woman and found the lack of a handshake to be humorous, as well as a boss move.

@sarahdhammond/TikTok

Others applauded Delaney’s sister for only sharing the respectful gesture with those who had earned it.

@sarahdhammond/TikTok

Some also assumed, based on her appearance and confidence at the ceremony, why she had been bullied at school, choosing to compliment her instead.

@sarahdhammond/TikTok

After seeing the influx of comments, compliments, and celebratory notes, Delaney shared a follow-up carousel of images, thanking everyone for the support and sharing a few photos that really captured her sister’s personality.

@saradhammond/TikTok

This just goes to show that while there may be some people in your life who are supposed to help you and won’t, there will be countless others who will rise to the occasion instead.

Not only did Delaney’s sister do something incredibly empowering for herself as she walked across that stage, but, undoubtedly, seeing so many heartfelt comments rooting from her would surely point her in the right direction for an incredible future.