Washington ( CNN ) -- Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius spoke out against bullying Wednesday at a middle school in Washington during a premiere of the anti-bullying documentary `` Speak Up . '' The documentary , set to air Sunday on Cartoon Network , consists of interviews with children who say they were bullied in school and includes strategies on how to bring an end to bullying . Cartoon Network is owned by Turner Broadcasting , the parent company of CNN . Sebelius told students gathered at Stuart-Hobson Middle School that bullying is simply unacceptable , `` You should n't ever have to go to class with an empty feeling in your stomach , trying to figure out what was going to happen in that class . You should n't be afraid to eat in the cafeteria . You should n't be afraid to speak up in class . That happens to too many kids too many days of the week , '' Sebelius told the students . Before part of the documentary was screened , students watched a taped message from President Barack Obama in which he said bully prevention is important to him both as the president and as a father . `` Bullying is not a rite of passage or a harmless part of growing up , it 's wrong , it 's destructive and we can all prevent it . I care about this issue deeply , not just as the president but as a dad , '' Obama said in the message . After the documentary screening , a panel consisting of bully prevention experts , the president of Cartoon Network and some victims of bullying discussed bully prevention . CNN Anchor Don Lemon moderated the discussion . To demonstrate how prevalent bullying is , Lemon asked the students in the auditorium whether they had been victims of bullying ; about half of them raised their hands . While Sebelius acknowledged there 's only so much the federal government can do to prevent bullying , she did say its prevention is a basic human right . `` Every child in this country has a right to feel safe , '' Sebelius said . `` Speak Up '' will air Sunday at 5:30 p.m. on Cartoon Network with an encore presentation at 8 p.m .
HHS President announces premiere of anti - bullying documentary ` ` Speak Up '' ` ` You ' n't be afraid , '' she tells middle - schoolers . ' is n't ` ` a harmless way of speaking up , '' president says in her message . The documentary 's first airing will be 5:30 p.m. Sunday on Cartoon Network .