Akey to education for our youth is a safe environment in which to learn.
While there have always been school bullies that have impeded that opportunity for some, there are indications things are becoming more dire.
鈥淏ullying is different than it used to be,鈥� said Corey O鈥橲oup, Saskatchewan鈥檚 new Advocate for Children and Youth told students at Dr. Brass School recently. He noted when he was a kid he could find safety at home, but today bullying can follow a youngster home as it takes place through various social media.
鈥淵ou can鈥檛 get rid of it. It鈥檚 worse than when I was a kid,鈥� he said.
While O鈥橲oup said he was pushed into lockers and had his running shoes taken, the stories today suggest there's rougher bullying taking place.
鈥淏ullying is getting way more violent and aggressive than it used to be,鈥� he said.
It was a theme picked up on by Saskatchewan Roughrider Spencer Moore when he spoke in Yorkton last week as part of Pink Day.
Moore said there are different types of bullying youth can face, including physical, verbal, cyber and social, and it鈥檚 important youth know what each is. When you know what bullying is happening, you can help those facing it deal with it by getting help.
Moore said he tries to keep his message simple (check out "Encouraging respect among students").
鈥淚 go to schools all across Saskatchewan,鈥� he told students, adding he has a very simple message: 鈥淏e kind to one another.鈥�
Moore said that during the presentations he and other Roughriders make through the Red Cross, they look to build 鈥減ositive happy relationships鈥� and to help inspire youth not to bully one another.
Moore said 鈥渨e鈥檙e all different鈥� and we must respect those differences. 鈥淚 think that it鈥檚 awesome we鈥檙e all different 鈥� I think life would be very boring if everybody was the same.
鈥淚t鈥檚 OK to be different.鈥�
Once you accept differences you 鈥渞espect others for being who they are,鈥� offered Moore. 鈥淵ou don鈥檛 have to be best friends with everybody but you should respect everybody.鈥�
And that is the crucial message being shared through what is now an international movement that is Pink Day.
In 2007, a Grade 9 student in Cambridge, N.S. was bullied by classmates for wearing a pink shirt to school. Taking notice, two Grade 12 students named Travis Price and David Shepherd rallied their friends to send a message to the bullies. The next day the halls were filled with students in pink t-shirts. This was the beginning of Pink Day.
Their actions sparked a world-wide movement shedding light on the issues surrounding bullying and inspiring others to 鈥楤e Someone鈥檚 Hero鈥� by speaking up when they see bullying happening.
Since then, over 233,000 people in Saskatchewan have participated in Red Cross Pink Day celebrations.
It is a message that is clearly one which needs to be reinforced so that students can rise above bullying allowing them to become whatever they dream to be.
