An 11-year-old boy who shared a last name with President Donald Trump was bullied by his peers into changing it, but an anti-bullying organization is urging him to keep the presidential moniker.
Joshua Berto, formerly known as Joshua Trump, lives in Delaware and bears no relation to the president. He is reportedly going by his father’s surname after that of his mother, Megan Trump, garnered relentless abuse from his classmates. (RELATED: SICK: Barron Trump Is Reportedly Being Bullied At School)
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally at the American Airlines Center on Sept. 14, 2015 in Dallas, Texas. More than 20,000 tickets have been distributed for the event. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
“They curse at him, they call him an idiot, they call him stupid,” his mother recounted to an ABC affiliate in Philadelphia.
She added that her son “hates himself, and he hates his last name, and he feels sad all the time.” (RELATED: Melania Opens Up About Raising Barron, Anti-Bullying Campaign: ‘Sometimes You Have To Fight Back’)
The bullying was so intense that the boy’s father, Bobby Berto, decided to pull his son out of school and homeschool him for a year.
To honor his ordeal, Joshua was awarded a “Medal of Courage” by the Pennsylvania-based nonprofit Teach Anti Bullying. The organization encouraged the boy not to kowtow to bullies.
“No one should change their name for anyone! Period!” the organization tweeted Tuesday.
No one should change their name for anyone! Period!
— Teach Anti Bullying (@TeachAntiBully1) December 18, 2018