As well as wearing pink, students participated in a number of anti-bullying activities including having to have a conversation with 10 people they would not normally talk to. They had to fill out sheets recording their interactions. Students were eligible for draws once they completed and handed in their sheets.

On their website, the Canadian Red Cross says, “Wear the Shirt. Be the Difference”.

The Red Cross asked people province wide to wear pink shirts on April 4th, 2012 to bring awareness to bullying issues and what we can do to create a safe and respectful environment in our communities.

Why Pink? Pink Shirt Day is an engaging way to get students thinking about bullying and about what they can do to create a safe and respectful environment in their school. This initiative started in 2007 when two high school students in Nova Scotia took a stand against bullying. By asking all of their peers to wear pink to school in support of a male classmate who had been bullied for wearing a pink shirt, they created a grassroots campaign that has attracted worldwide attention.

Coronach School also wore pink on February 29 in support of anti-bullying.

Sask News – Students “X” out bullying

THINK PINK: Philip Patston wants people to not just stand up for those who are bullied but start asking questions about why it's happening.

Bullying is not just a kids’ issue – it’s rampant throughout our society, a leading Auckland social entrepreneur says.

“I think it’s an adult issue and we need to show leadership as adults about breaking down power dynamics and not just accusing kids,” Diversity Works Trust executive director Philip Patston says.

The Westmere resident has helped create the strategy behind this year’s Pink Shirt Day which asks Kiwis: “Where’s the power”?

He is joining hundreds of New Zealanders on Friday in a mark of solidarity against bullying by wearing a pink shirt.

Mr Patston says the Mental Health Foundation’s colourful campaign is a way to not only acknowledge those who are affected by destructive behaviour but to talk about what causes it.

Pink Shirt Day first started in Canada when a teenage boy was bullied for his choice of clothing.

His friends stood up for him by distributing pink shirts to all of their classmates the next day.

The campaign came to New Zealand in 2009 via Wellington organisation SS4Q and for the past three years has focused on homophobic bullying.

This year marks a broader focus for the event.

Mr Patston believes bullying is a symptom of power-driven relationships that exist within all areas of our communities.

It’s often used as a way to get promotions, status, and money.

He says people have a fear of not getting what they want and by engaging in destructive behaviour they deny others what they need.

“You only have to look at the way Parliament operates.

“People try and emulate that leadership thinking it’s a good way to run a business or a school but it’s not, it’s a lazy way to lead.”

Besides, babies are not born bullying each other instead children learn this behaviour, he says.

Mr Patston believes if people learn how to better manage relationship dynamics then situations that lead to bullying can be prevented.

It’s little things like walking away or not talking back that make a difference.

He also thinks a lot of bullying occurs when people focus on their differences.

That’s why his charity Diversity Works Trust uses creativity and diversity to drive positive social change.

“If you sit two people down and point out their similarities and differences then that’s a way to mend the relationships. Because what they’ve missed is their commonality,” he says.
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Getting the anti-bullying message out is a personal crusade for the director who self-identifies as being a gay-disabled-vegetarian-comedian.

“When you think about diversity and start being creative about it, that’s when social change starts to happen.”

He hopes conversations around power dynamics and bullying continue for longer than just Pink Shirt Day.

Auckland Now – Pink day targets bullying

More than 80 per cent of the 2500 teachers and school staff surveyed say they have been bullied by parents, according to research in a new book by academics, Deirdre Duncan, Dan Riley and John Edwards.

They say the bullying of school staff by parents (and others, including principals) is a ”dark side” of schools, ignored because schoolyard bullies attract the most publicity. There was no surprise at the behaviour of Caroline Coupland, the daughter of independent MP Bob Katter, who was this week found guilty of assault for shoving a teacher’s aide.
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The incident occurred after Coupland’s three daughters, including one with the disability Williams syndrome, were expelled from a Mosman childcare centre for taking a headache tablet into ”show and tell”, a violation of the centre’s policies.

The book, Bullying of Staff in Schools, tells of many parents behaving badly to teachers. One teacher wrote: ”Parents shout, raise fists, scream, argue, storm out of the room, accuse staff of enjoying making children suffer and sometimes accuse them of paedophilia.”

While parents were the most frequent bullies, 70 per cent of staff had been bullied by principals, who were often more harmful and persistent than parents and often oblivious to the impact of their actions, Dr Duncan said.

Bullying included shouting, rage and anger, being publicly reprimanded, belittling someone, threatening to make a teacher’s life difficult, physical abuse or threats of violence, intimidating behaviour such as shoving or blocking the way, and insulting emails and phone calls.

Tempers often flared when teachers dealt with overly anxious parents of young children, or when children were sick, said Fionie Stavert, a Sydney organiser for the NSW Teachers Federation.

She said rather than supporting teachers, as they had in the past, some parents now questioned their authority, and believed they had an ”inalienable right to scream [at teachers] and demand things” for their children.

A North Shore teacher with 15 years’ experience agreed.

”Take Bob Katter’s daughter for example, she sent pills in with kids. Instead of saying ‘I did the wrong thing,’ she yelled and shoved someone. What are we teaching our kids? We need to teach them to take responsibility by doing so ourselves.”

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/national/parent-bullies-a-growing-trend-20120516-1yrh6.html#ixzz1v5WcKT00

Sydney Morning Herald – Parent bullies a ‘growing trend’

Offending pages have been pulled down by Facebook after a group of Gisborne mums banded together over the past two days, horrified at the contents of two particularly “nasty” pages.

But not before many Gisborne teenagers were named and insulted anonymously.

In the 24-hour period yesterday, before one of the pages was pulled down, there were more than 150 status updates that contained defamatory comments putting down particular teenagers, many of a sexual nature.

The page said it would post whatever people heard about other people, and “we will not tell who you are”.

New Zealand social media commentator and columnist David Slack said high visibility of a situation like this was desirable.

“You want it to work as a deterrent and make it apparent that this type of action does have consequences.”

Mr Slack said the best thing in a small community like Gisborne was to get the police involved and let teenagers know there were consequences for their actions.

“Police attention is all you need for kids to pull into line.”

One mother contacted The Herald to get help.

The page was sharing made-up lies and the names were easily recognisable as Gisborne teenagers, she said.

“These pages are nasty and are what can cause teen suicides. Some of the stuff on there was shocking, even threats made to kids by other kids, just horrible.”

Emails from a mother have been sent to all the high schools and a complaint was laid with the police.

Gisborne police sergeant and youth services co-ordinator Craig Smith said police took this form of social media bullying seriously.

“The effect on the victims of this bullying can be extreme, especially on young people who are more vulnerable. The public needs to be aware it is possible to trace the origins of these comments.”

Sgt Smith said it would be interesting to know whether Facebook could implement further consequences other than closing down the page, such as preventing the culprits from gaining access to their site for a period of time or something similar.

Speaking from Auckland this morning, Mr Slack said ideally kids would not do this in the first place.

“But it is abundantly clear they will do this stuff when they see the opportunity. The best you can do is make sure they’re warned off as soundly, clearly, quickly and effectively as you can manage.”

“Kids get a more realistic perspective when they realise the real world is paying attention.”

“The thing about Facebook is that it has this disconnection from reality that makes kids think they can do anything at all.”

“Teenagers don’t think they will face consequences for their actions, so the sooner you make them realise they will, the sooner you can diminish the harm.”

Mr Slack said it was a good time for the community to express outrage and let the teenagers know what they were doing was contemptible.

“There is nothing brave or especially clever about it either.”

“As long as you can ensure that consequences are visited on the kids who are doing it, the last thing you want is the community to appear unwilling to crack down on them.”

“But my guess would be that all adults who are aware of this would be outraged.”

Various pages have been blocked and reported by parents, but the user would restart another page under a different name and continue.

Another Gisborne mother said she doubted whether many of the hurtful comments were true but said there was so much bullying going around and it could really mess up a person’s life.

“It can lead to suicide, which is a real issue. It was really nasty stuff.”

She became aware of the page through a friend’s post on Facebook, warning of the page and its contents.

“I emailed the schools directly and I also went on to the police website. I went to the netsafe site and put in a complaint there as well.”

The mum said she received an email back from one of the schools, thanking her for making them aware of the situation and saying they would liaise with police.

“I went on the page last night and I have actually seen that they are naming the people who are making these comments now – but that’s just made the whole things even worse. It was anonymous before.”

The page to which she refers has now been shut down by Facebook.

What You can do

Facebook released its Stop Bullying: Speak Up app designed to help prevent bullying among children and young adults, and has a no-bullying policy _ so don’t hesitate to complain. Meanwhile, there is a range of resources closer to home to help people deal with physical or cyber bullying, including:

Netsafe.org.nz and related site Cyberbullying.org.nz (NetSafe staff can be contacted during office hours on 0508 NETSAFE).

Inmyday.org.nz, where parents can learn about what their kids are up to on-line.

Mylgp.org.nz, which has information on everything from girls’ behaviour on facebook to how small children see the worldwide web.

NZ Police have their own site, nobully.org.nz along with the 0800 NO BULLY is a 24-hour free information line. The NZ Police Law-Related Education Programme also has the Kia Kaha resource kit about bullying, designed for students, teachers, parents, and caregivers.

Young people who want support to deal with bullying or other issues can also talk with:

Youthline – Their helpline is 0800 37 66 33 or you can freetext 234.

What’s Up – Their free helpline 0800 WHATSUP (0800 942 87 87) operates from noon to midnight.

Lifeline – They provide a 24/7 phone counselling service on 0800 543 354.

- The Gisborne Herald

NZ Herald – Parent outrage at Facebook bullying

So the 14-year-old girl, Alex Boston, is using a somewhat novel strategy to fight back: She’s slapping her two classmates with a libel lawsuit.

As states consider or pass cyberbullying laws in reaction to high-profile cases around the country, attorneys and experts say many of the laws aren’t strong enough, and lawsuits such as this one are bound to become more commonplace.

“A lot of prosecutors just don’t have the energy to prosecute 13-year-olds for being mean,” said Parry Aftab, an attorney and child advocate who runs stopcyberbullying.org. “Parents are all feeling very frustrated, and they just don’t know what to do.”

Almost every state has a law or other policy prohibiting cyberbullying, but very few cover intimidation outside of school property.

Alex, who agreed to be identified to raise awareness about cyberbullying, remembers the mean glances and harsh words from students when she arrived at her suburban Atlanta middle school. She didn’t know why she was being badgered until she discovered the phoney Facebook page. It was her name and information, though her profile picture was doctored to make her face appear bloated.

The page suggested Alex smoked marijuana and spoke a made-up language called “Retardish.” It was also set up to appear that Alex had left obscene comments on other friends’ pages, made frequent sexual references and posted a racist video. The creators also are accused of posting derogatory messages about Alex.

“I was upset that my friends would turn on me like that,” she told The Associated Press. “I was crying. It was hard to go to school the next day.”

Alex learned of the phoney page a year ago and told her parents, who soon contacted administrators at Palmer Middle School and filed a report with Cobb County Police.

“At the time this report was taken in May 2011, we were not aware of any cyberbullying law on the books that would take her specific situation and apply it to Georgia law,” said Cobb County police spokesman Sgt. Dana Pierce.

Police encouraged the Boston family to report the fake account to Facebook. Alex’s family said despite requests to Facebook to take the page down, the company did not do so. The website was taken down around the time the lawsuit was filed a week ago.

Facebook spokesman Andrew Noyes and Cobb County school officials declined comment on the case. The two students named in the lawsuit haven’t hired an attorney and their parents couldn’t be reached for comment.

The thorny issue of whether schools may censor students who are off campus when they attack online has led to split decisions in federal courts. Administrators and judges have wrestled over whether free speech rights allow students to say what they want when they’re not at school.

Justin Layshock of western Pennsylvania was suspended after he created a MySpace parody in 2005 that said his principal smoked marijuana and hid beer behind his desk. The suspension was overturned by a federal judge, who found that school officials failed to show the student’s profile disrupted school operations. The judge’s decision was later upheld by an appeals court.

In West Virginia, Kara Kowalski sued school officials after she was suspended from her high school for five days in 2005 for creating a web page suggesting another student had a sexually transmitted disease. A federal appeals court upheld the suspension, dismissing Kowalski’s argument that the school shouldn’t punish her because she created the site at home.

The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear either case.

Jason Medley, of Houston, filed a defamation lawsuit in June against three of his daughter’s classmates. The classmates were accused of filming themselves making false sexual remarks about his daughter and posting the video to Facebook.

The complaint was settled months later with apologies from the girls and a small donation to charity, Medley’s attorney Robert Naudin said.

“The girls involved likely now understand the wrongful nature of what they did and the harm that can come of such conduct,” he said. “They made a donation out of their allowances to a charitable organization that fights against cyberbullying.”

In Georgia, lawmakers have given school administrators new powers to punish students if they bully others at school, but legislation that would expand the laws to include text messages and social media sites never reached a vote this year.

Seven states have added off-campus harassment to their bullying laws in recent years, though Georgia is not one of them.

“Cyberbullying really goes beyond the four walls of the school or the four corners of the campus, because if you use a cellphone, PDA or social media site, then those activities follow the child both into the school and out of the school,” said House Minority Leader Stacey Abrams, a Democrat from Atlanta who co-sponsored the legislation that would have expanded Georgia’s bullying law. “It’s important for the state to really get ahead of this. It’s already happening, but it’s going to be more exacerbated and more difficult the longer we go.”

Alex and her family have started a petition to encourage lawmakers to strengthen Georgia’s law. Her lawsuit seeks a jury trial and unspecified damages.

“At first blush, you wouldn’t think it’s a big deal,” said Alex’s attorney, Natalie Woodward. “Once you actually see the stuff that’s on there, it’s shocking.”

The Spec – Schoolgirl slaps Facebook bullies with libel suit

Pink Shirt Day was marked April 4 with students and community members, of between 800 and 1,000 by organizer’s estimates, wearing pink T-shirts in an effort to take a stand against bullying in schools and the workplace. Pink Shirt Day started after a high school student was teased for wearing pink. Shortly afterward, two other students handed out pink shirts to others in order to show their support for the victimized student.

According to Shannon Culy, a school counsellor with the Holy Family Catholic School Division and organizer of the event, it’s an issue that should get the attention it deserves.

“I think it’s something that kids talk about, need to talk about,” Culy said. “We need to keep that awareness going. It isn’t something that just happens on one day where we all wear pink. It’s something we always need to keep on the forefront. We need to be respectful. We need to stand up, and we can’t sit back anymore.”

Students from both elementary and secondary schools attended the march that began at the courthouse.

“Days like this are important to have because bullying is obviously something that is happening in our schools,” said Brayden Gervais, a Grade 11 ECS student, adding, “so I think it’s important to spread this good message to kids and help eliminate bullying in our schools.”

Gervais also spoke about the Challenge Day that the high school brought in for the Grade 9 students last month. It was a three-day program that dealt directly with bullying and the idea of respect among all students.

“I wasn’t part of Challenge Day, but I heard it was very successful. I think a lot of kids learned a lot, and it was a good experience for our school.”

Challenge Day is something that organizers hope will continue in subsequent years as a program that all their Grade 9 students go through when entering the school.

Gervais said there is bullying that happens at ECS, but added that he feels the school is taking steps to address it and that it may be changing attitudes already.

“I think it’s been a lot better. I think the high school is doing an excellent job with programs like Challenge Day and this bullying march to help stomp out bullying. There’s still bullying, but I think it’s beginning to subside.”

George Barker, community outreach co-ordinator for the Red Cross, said that in speaking to some of the students who were there, the message of what Pink Shirt Day is had gotten across.

“Our goals are accomplished when we (educate) and people are fully aware, and put it into practise.”

He said students had told him they have seen a bit of a change already happening in their schools.
Culy was pleased with how the march unfolded and hopes that it will continue on a regular basis.

“It went fantastic. It was great to see all the kids out here, and it was great to see all the pink.”

The organizers, through the Red Cross and Holy Family Catholic School Division, had been working to get everything organized since last fall, but the last few weeks were when the finer details came together.

“It really started to come together in the last few weeks. We had kids distribute posters downtown and get final invitations out,” said Culy.

See www.estevanmercury.ca for video coverage of the event.

Estevan Mercury – Fighting bullies with a pink march

Joy Furman, the girl’s mother, wants the boy to stay at least 500 feet away from her daughter. The children are classmates at Stephen Foster Traditional Academy in Louisville.

The bullying began last year when the children were third graders and has continued as they shared the same classroom as fourth graders, Ted Gordon, the woman’s attorney, said in a telephone interview Tuesday.

“It’s late in the school year, but she’s entitled to a pleasant May,” Gordon said of the girl. “She’s gone through hell the last eight months.”

The boy weighs about twice as much as the girl, he added.

A hearing on the request for a restraining order is scheduled for May 2 in a circuit court.

The sought-after restraining order arises from a lawsuit that Furman filed against the boy’s parents or guardians, two third-grade teachers and the principal at the school. The suit claims that the boy pushed and shoved the girl and cornered her in the classroom while they were third graders. Both children are identified only by initials in the suit.

Furman met with the school counselor and her daughter was switched to another third-grade class that school year. There also was an understanding that the two children would not have any further contact, the suit said.

But in late May last year, the two children ended up on the playground at the same time, the suit said. The boy confronted the girl and kicked her in the chest, knocking her down and injuring her sternum, it said.

The two were placed in the same fourth-grade class, and the bullying has continued, including pushing and shoving in the lunch line, Gordon said. He said the threats became “increasingly hostile,” and at one point the boy chased the girl with scissors in the classroom. The teacher moved the girl to the front of the class and the boy to the back trying to protect the girl, according to a court filing.

Jefferson County public schools spokeswoman Lauren Roberts said the playground incident last May was “appropriately dealt with.” But she said the complaint contained “vague allegations” of bullying that the district could not substantiate.

“We received no specific allegations of continued bullying until late last week,” she said. “The new allegations will be investigated and appropriate action will be taken.”

Roberts declined comment about the mother’s efforts to move her daughter to another class or school as her lawyer indicated.

Huffington Post – Joy Furman, Bullied Kentucky Girl’s Mom, Seeks Restraining Order Against 4th-Grade Student

Male students wore those T-shirts as a sign of support for a new Grade 9 boy who’d been bullied for wearing a pink shirt on his first day at the school. It was a simple, but powerful act that robbed the bullies of their power to isolate and humiliate their victim.

David Shepherd and Travis Price were the 17-year-old Grade 12 students who came up with the T-shirt idea, which has since come to symbolize the fight against bullying in all its forms in Canada.

Pink shirt days have become annual anti-bullying events across the country and today is Canadian Red Cross Pink Shirt Day in Saskatchewan. Designed to “bring awareness to bullying issues and what we can do to create a safe and respectful environment in our communities,” the event will see pink worn in classrooms and workplaces across the province.

It’s particularly appropriate that young people inspired the pink shirt movement since many high-profile bullying cases involve teenagers.

In January, for example, an Estevan judge convicted a teen of assault causing bodily harm for kicking another boy in the groin so hard the victim subsequently needed surgery and lost a testicle.

Bullying is all about power – bullies intimidate, humiliate and often physically hurt someone else in a twisted attempt to make themselves feel powerful. Anyone they perceive as weaker or just plain different is fair game.

We were made aware of a deeply disturbing example this week by a reader who wishes to simply be known as “breast cancer fighter”.

She writes: “So much is said about bullying happening in the schools, and I feel for anyone who has experienced it. However, due to the fact that very little is done to curb it, it has now spilt over into everyday society. It has now become the ‘norm’ to verbally abuse people for entertainment.”

The woman is undergoing chemotherapy and recently developed serious, possibly life-threatening complications, While waiting for a friend outside her house, she says “two teenage boys thought it was entertaining to scream verbal abuse at me while they drove by.”

Shocking indeed – would these idiots subject their own mothers or sisters to such vile taunts?

Bullies make life a misery in school, in personal relationships and in the workplace. We must work to improve education and awareness to help stop bullying.

Sadly, that’s unlikely to be enough. We also need effective laws to deal with bullying – and the will to enforce them.

Read more: http://www.leaderpost.com/Latest+news+updates+homepage/960812/story.html#ixzz1t1MQnPFg

Leader Post – Editorial: Pink tide turns against bullying

The Red Cross Pink Shirt campaign gives students the tools to not only stand up to bullies, but to help those who are being victimized. It’s a campaign M.J. Coldwell School in Regina has made its own.

“Our goal is to create healthy, successful students who succeed academically,” said Principal Sherri Beattie. “We know in order to do that they need to feel safe and secure.”

“When we’re wearing our pink shirts, we’re basically all a big happy family,” added grade eight student Savanna Smythe-Mcarthur. “When we come here, we all love each other, it’s just like home. You can come here and rely on everybody, and it makes me feel like I have a family here.”

More than 12-thousand students at 350 schools across Saskatchewan are participating in the campaign.

“They’re making a statement for everybody in the province about the kind of environment they want to live in and be a part of,” said Norm Jakubowski, the Provincial Manager of the Canadian Red Cross’ RespectED program, which gives students the tools to not only stand up to bullies, but help the victims as well.

“Make connections with kids who are sometimes targeted,” Jakubowski added. “Make sure that they’re not left out and alienated by the experience, and we give them some other tools and suggestions as we work through our program.”

Read it on Global News: Global Regina | Saskatchewan students support Pink Shirt day

GLobal Regina – Saskatchewan students support Pink Shirt day

So moans the evil Queen Doris of the Sixth Dimension in 1982’s cult musical Forbidden Zone, quite possibly the omphalos of stylish cynicism and postmodern trash.

Does it still feel this way?

Is being “so young, so bad, so what?”– the reform school girls’ anthem in the movie of the same name – still an aesthetically desirable position?

Notably not.

This last week, the notorious and widely loathed pornographic submission website Is Anyone Up? – which featured naked pictures sent in by angry exes in a kind of Senecan e-drama – was shut down by the site’s creator Hunter Moore.

Moore has reportedly sold the domain to bullying-support site Bullyville.com, saying he’d become friends with BullyVille founder James McGibney, who helped him realize his talents in programming and social networking “could be channelled in a positive way.” And the young pornographer does seem sheepish, particularly about his appearance last fall on Anderson Cooper’s daytime talk show, where he was sliced and diced by the nimble host. He’s even formed a new, principled site called We Party for a Profit, which is linked to several charitable organizations.

But Moore’s apology is so obviously insincere (remember, he told Cooper flatly he wanted to be a “jerk” and profiteer): Reading it, it’s clear his regrets involve legal hassles, and nothing more. “The site was a blessing for me,” he states in his letter on Bullyville.com, “and still is, but I am burned out and I honestly can’t take another underage kid getting submitted and having to go through the process of reporting it and dealing with all the legal drama of that situation.”

What is really happening here? Is the world becoming a nicer place, or has bullying, on every level, become such a distasteful concept that even the likes of Moore are ceasing to do it?

Moore is so reminiscent of the now dead-but-for-the-burying Tucker Max (author of I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell), of Girls Gone Wild-maker Joe Francis and of deadbeat billionaire Brandon Davis: young-ish profligates and congenial predators (or, in Davis’s case, salacious party monsters) and part of a social trend that has simply passed.

In its place, and a year after Perez Hilton re-branded himself as not “hated” but “sassy,” apologized for “bullying” stars and told The View’s Joy Behar and his fans that he has become “more positive,” is the New Nice, an adult stance against not only the issue of teen bullying that films such as Lee Hirsch’s documentary Bully have pushed front and centre, but bullying, period.

Hilton’s revelation occurred after Jennifer Aniston, whom he has referred to as “Maniston” for years, in white-scrawled letters, ran into him in a parking garage and asked, plainly, “Why are you so mean?”

Hilton was poleaxed. You aren’t real, he told her, you’re a “character.”

Herein lies the terrible disconnect, however. While Aniston can cry all the way to the bank, others – civilians – are not as easily consoled after online attacks.

Bullyville, in spite of its laudable name and purpose – exposing bullied celebrities and “alleged” celebrity bullies – is owned by the creators of Cheaterville, where posters are encouraged to “Fight Infidelity. Post a Known Cheater Now” – ultimately a scurrilous trend-surfing site of no moral value.

But it is fascinating to watch the idea of kindness, of decency, spread and spike.

As a corollary to the Green movement, the New Nice asks that we become obsessed with the sweet antics of video cats; that we sympathize with judge Jennifer (Cruella de) Lopez when she gets “goosies” on American Idol. We are to dismiss Lady Gaga for the homelier and lovelorn Adele, and love all films about human cruelty.

We are also, if uneasily, to applaud the specious actions of a Hunter Moore, who was clearly bullied himself (but in a nice way) to abandon his provocative business.

But bullies often don’t change when they grow up. They simply morph into more complex and sometimes far more powerful versions of their youthful selves. If we force them to change their ways, won’t they simply morph in such a way as to elude us further?

Instead of trying to legislate Nice (via the tricky antagonist of free speech, the hate-crimes laws), let us lead by example, and simply so.

“Don’t call people names!” Behar barked at Perez. There’s a nice, honest start.

The Globe and Mail – The New Nice: a trend even the mean are embracing

Orangeville .com – ‘Bully proof your child’

The play In Pink, presented by the Neptune Theatre at Amherst Regional High school, is about those two boys and the ups and downs they faced while starting, what is now known as Pink Shirt Day. Price and Shepard distributed the pinks shirts among the students at their school and the campaign grew from there.

“I think bullying has always been a problem in schools,” said Matt Amyotte, who portrayed Price in the play. “At every level (in schools) there needs to be an awareness and a plan for dealing with bullying because it is prevalent and it is a problem and any school that says they don’t have a bullying issue or that bullying doesn’t exist in their school isn’t looking hard enough. It doesn’t need to be physical, there’s verbal, emotional.”

Amyotte said there was one scene that really hit home for him and drives the meaning of the play. The scene is between Shepard and his father, who reveals to the teenager that one of the teachers he is having a problem with had been bullied while he was in school and his classmates could have stopped it but didn’t.

“Bullying is as much a problem for the bully and the person being bullied as it is for all the bystanders who watch it happen and don’t do anything,” said Amyotte. “That perpetuates bullying, that tells the bully that what he is doing is OK and it makes the person being bullied feel like they don’t have an escape.”

Though the message about the play is a serious one, there were some not so serious moments that took place to keep the students entertained and engaged. Simon Henderson, who portrayed Shepard, said keeping a straight face was sometimes hard to do while on stage because of some of the characters his partner had to play.

“Getting to play the lady who runs the thrift store was really fun for me,” said Amyotte. “Because the drag is so over the top that it’s not subversive or offensive, it’s just kind of silly.”

“I spend most of my time trying not to laugh at the stuff that Matt does,” said Henderson. “That’s the most fun I have, it’s actually not that fun, it’s really irritating because I can’t stop smiling. He’s not even trying to make me laugh and he just does.”

Student Corey Wheaton was in attendance for the presentation. He enjoyed the play and thinks the message got across, and also helped the students understand what’s behind the Pink Shirt Day they participate in each year.

“I thought the presentation was very well done,” said Wheaton. “I think that they were very comedic in what they were doing and I thought they did very well portraying what those kids did. We participate normally every year (in Pink Shirt Day) and it’s great to have background on what we were doing. I thought it was a good message to give to our school. I think it gives more meaning because we did have the pink shirt day and it gave more meaning to what we were going on about.”

Amyotte also said though the schools participate in Pink Shirt Day and take part in Anti-Bullying campaigns that the fight to end bullying is not over. He said that is one of the messages that came out during the presentation of the play.

“Pink Day is lovely and Anti-Bullying Day is excellent and these are all really great initiatives but they don’t cure the problem and they don’t solve the issue and it doesn’t just go away,” he said. “So you have to be aware and you have to be vigilant and you have to really be on top of it and there’s always something to work toward, which is, I think, a really important part of this message.”

The play was one of a couple of productions brought to the area by Showcase Productions. It also sponsored Neptune’s Beethoven Lives Upstairs for elementary school students.

“It’s part of our mandate to develop an appreciation for the performing arts,” Ed McKay of Showcase Productions said. “We also want to encourage young people to consider participating in theatre.”

Money raised to bring in Neptune Theatre comes from Showcase Productions’ productions as well as its theatre trips to New York.

Showcase also provides about $10,000 in busaries and scholarships to graduating high school students going into the arts.

Truro Daily News – Neptune Theatre presents In Pink

The hardware is the make or break component in battery life.  A lot of people don’t realize this when a ton of software is slowing down the computer.  Optimizing hardware is the best thing for battery longevity whether the laptop is new or old.  In addition to installing power-management utility software a person can turn off ports, configure the display, and create a power-saving profile.  Disabling unused ports and other components like Ethernet, USB and wireless internet can be done through the Device Manager.  The computer display can turn off when unused just by going in Control Panel and looking for Windows Power Options.  The computer can be worked out for various situations by making a power-saving profile.  Right click on ‘My Computer’ or ‘Computer’ and select ‘Preferences’.  This will allow you to configure your hardware and allows you to see how much battery life you have left.

Now that the hardware is configured the next thing to do is to check the voltage.  On the AC adapter there should be a way for a person to know if the charge will not cause the battery to overheat.  It also has to match the computer; the wrong type of adapter or wrong voltage can send the battery into an early grave.  Use a cooling pad instead of a pillow, blanket, your lap and other surfaces that heat easily to allow breathing room for the computer.  The desk surface must be clean.  Do not store laptops and desktops in a warm place (80 degree temperature and up).  Let the computer reach room temperature before using.  If possible take the battery out when it is charged up.  Do a full discharge every thirty charges.

Shopping for Dell gaming laptops should be about looking at battery life as well as features.  Shopping for a new battery is about buying one that will last a long time.  For a new computer get one that is ultra-low-voltage with led display, a smaller screen and a solid storage drive.  All of these components will save on battery life.  For a new battery a person should not buy based on price alone.  Get a brand new battery even if it’s a hefty price instead of a cheaper one that degrades quickly.  Also don’t buy used or expired batteries; look at the manufacturer’s date, whether it is used (or new), and/or how far the product life is.  While it is impossible to tell a top notch battery from a worn out one there is no harm in trying.  Preserving battery life should be one of the most important things for long lasting computer use.

This was the message delivered April 20 by 14-year-old Curtis Paquette at the proclamation of Greater Sudbury’s Courage to Stand day.

Bullied for the past decade, Paquette was continuously harassed for his appearance, his size, his vegetarian diet and his intelligence.

Unfortunately, his problems didn’t stop in the schoolyard.

“My dad has been in prison most of my life,” Paquette says. “So, I never really had a male role model.”

The Grade 9 College Notre Dame student says there were other problems at home. His family was never financially well off, he says and they moved around 10 times in 14 years. He also says without his father around, the influence on his personality came from his mother and sister and was mainly feminine.

In the midst of all those problems, when he was 10, Paquette watched as a woman who was his best friend and a family member was stabbed to death. Paquette started harming himself and, after a few months into his first year of high school, was suicidal.

“It affected me so much,” he says. “I wanted to commit suicide four separate times. I couldn’t stand making my mom sad, though.”

Paquette says despite these setbacks, he has learned to be brave and strong. He went to the vice principal at the high school for help. He says the school took it very seriously and a change was made.

“I want bullies to know that what they’re doing is wrong,” Paquette says. “When they are older and more mature, they will realize they were wrong and hold that guilt forever. I really hope someday the bullying will stop and I can leave it all behind me.”

Mimi O’Bonsawin, 18, wrote and performed an acoustic song for the event, called Courage to Stand.

“It’s about giving people courage,” she says. “I feel that a lot of people need a hand, if only so they don’t feel alone.”

The College Notre Dame student said a student group brainstor med the concept of the song, but she volunteered to write it. She says after about a week of practising and writing, the song was ready.

O’Bonsawin says she wants people to realize they may not notice someone they know needs help. She says the people you least expect may need love and care more than anyone else.

“In my song, I express that it doesn’t matter if you’re old or young or anything else, everyone needs help,” she says.

Courage to Stand day was created to remind people to treat each other with dignity and respect, says Greaer Sudbury Police Chief Frank Elsner. It is a day where people can help kids stand up against bullying.

“We wanted to put a positive spin on a problem,” Elsner says. “We think if we change attitudes now, we can change lives later.”

According to Elsner, criminals are just worse kinds of bullies and crimes are stronger forms of bullying. He said bullying is a problem that needs to be addressed.

Elsner says bullying crosses a threshold when it becomes criminal, such as assault, threat and intimidation. He says many wars are the result of extreme bullying. Elsner says this is why a change needs to be made.

“We are not saying don’t be a bully, but saying respect one another,” Elsner says. “If people learn to respect one another, they won’t become bullies.”

Sudbury Star – Stand up and bullying will stop, says teen

Dominic’s family says L’École Samuel-de-Champlain in Saint John is sending the wrong message.

Dominic’s parents say it looks like the school is making Dominic appear to be a trouble-maker, while they say, his real abusers are getting unexpected satisfaction from making him suffer more.

Dominic’s parents say their son has been targeted for years because he is flamboyantly different.

‘They call me big, fat gay boy and when I’m walking by they say, “Watch out, the ground is trembling.” It’s just the truth in the end. But still, to be called fat in a mean way, hurts a lot.’— Dominic, 12

They say most of the abuse is verbal but he’s also been kicked, punched and slapped. He says he was harassed on the swings when kids threw three handfuls of gravel rocks at him.

“They call me big, fat gay boy and when I’m walking by they say, ‘Watch out, the ground is trembling,’” says Dominic who admits he’s overweight.

“It’s just the truth in the end. But still, to be called fat in a mean way, hurts a lot.”

CBC News has opted to only use the first names of Dominic and his family.

Andree, Dominic’s mother, says the situation is causing pain for everyone in the family, including the boy’s father, grandmother and little sister.

Dominic’s sister still rides the school bus but Dominic doesn’t use the bus anymore.

He says he was so nervous about returning to school in September, he vomited on the bus and the kids won’t let him forget it.

Andree says Dominic’s sister doesn’t eat properly because she’s afraid of gaining weight and being ridiculed.

His mother says money is also tight in the household since she took a leave from work in November.
Mother says bullies have ‘bragging rights’

On Nov. 14, 2011, the family says their difficult situation turned insufferable.

Dominic says on that day he was separated from his classmates while his fellow Grade 7 students were asked to engage in a writing exercise about the recent “schoolyard drama.”

Andree says she would later learn that three of those papers contained allegations against Dominic, accusing him of inappropriate sexual touching.

‘Had they brought him back within the first couple of weeks, it would have shown the students that what they were saying was hearsay and we’re going to move on. By making him be out for so long, it has allowed them to win. Now they have bragging rights.’— Andree, the boy’s mother

Andree says she asked the police to get involved.

The Department of Social Development was involved and Dominic’s family hired lawyers.

Andree says, after a couple of weeks, the matter was dismissed as “kid stuff.” She says no charges were laid.

His mother says she had hoped Dominic would return to school immediately. Instead, she says he spent about three months unable to attend, tutored part-time at the provincial government’s expense.

Andree says that decision effectively punished her son, while the bullies got to gloat about the damage they’d inflicted.

“Had they brought him back within the first couple of weeks, it would have shown the students that what they were saying was hearsay and we’re going to move on,” she said.

“By making him be out for so long, it has allowed them to win. Now they have bragging rights.”

Andree says Dominic returned to school part-time on Feb. 13 and was back in classes, full-time, after the March Break.

She says upon his return, Dominic was supposed to have an opportunity to address his fellow students and express himself about all that had happened. Andree says that never happened.

As part of Dom’s reintegration, the family asked that he get an attendant.

Andree says she was hoping a monitor might provide her son some protection. She says the school suggested an attendant would be able to guide Dominic in stressful or threatening situations.

Now, Andree said she believes that plan has misfired. She says her son appears to be the one with the warden.

“The school is trying to make him look like he’s crazy. One recommendation given to us was to have him admitted to the Pierre Caissie Centre, a youth facility for children with psychiatric issues. My son doesn’t have psychiatric issues. How can professionals who have never met my son, never evaluated my son, be able to recommend him for such a program,” says Andree.

Andree says Dominic has been to counsellors, social workers and a pediatric psychiatrist who diagnosed him with clinical depression related to too many years of bullying.

“Dominic can have a bit of a potty mouth. He can be vulgar. He’s a bit defensive,” says Andree.

“He’s developed that. But you tell me one child who wouldn’t develop anything like that, having been bullied for so many years.”
School provides safe environment, principal says

Lise Drisdelle-Cormier, the principal of L’École Samuel-de-Champlain, says the province’s privacy act prevents her from discussing any particular case.

She did say the school has an obligation to provide a safe and positive learning environment for everyone.

She says that could possibly explain why students who say they are victims of bullying might themselves sent home with a tutor or followed by an attendant.

“Sometimes it’s the best for health, mental health and safety issues, sometimes that person is asked to stay home with a tutor. Sometimes we need time to prepare a plan and for that plan to be implemented,” says Drisdelle-Cormier.

“Every situation is unique in the sense that we have details we need to address.”

Drisdelle-Cormier says the school has a wellness committee to encourage a positive outlook on life and to help teach students coping techniques such as meditative breathing.

She says the school also provides a quiet room where students can go if they need a time-out to get their emotions under control.

She says there is also a gay-straight alliance that meets every week and gives presentations on inclusion.

“We’re here to help you become the better you that you can be,” says Drisdelle-Cormier.

When negative behaviour escalates, Drisdelle-Cormier says different levels of intervention do become necessary.
Family would like an apology from the school

The school district may get involved. And in rare cases, the file is sent to the province’s complex committee, where government agents consult from the departments of health, education, social development and public safety

Some cases also involve New Brunswick’s youth advocate, whose office also cited privacy laws and declined to provide specific, identifying comment for this story.

Dominic’s mother says her family has been through all these interventions and she fears her son has now accumulated a long and damning file that will haunt him wherever he goes.

“I want all that information gone,” says Andree.

‘I think people have to start standing up to bullying. A lot of people won’t say anything about it. That was my problem. I kept it in. It made me really depressed. But if you tell people about it, it relieves so much stress.’— Dominic

“If I ever decide to put him somewhere else, I don’t want that file to follow him. It’s like he has a criminal record for being crazy and he’s not.”

Dominic’s parents say it’s time to lose the attendant.

“I don’t really like it because I’m losing a lot of friends because she’s there,” says Dominic.

“She has to know whatever anybody tells me or whatever I say. I can’t keep anything from her.”

Andree says she’d like to share her experience with other families who are hurting.

“I’d love to start a support group for parents and talk about what to do, who to call. So many people have questions and they’re lost.”

Dominic says one positive change in his life was coming out to his family. He says he had that conversation with his parents five months ago and when his mother and father showed total acceptance.

“I think people have to start standing up to bullying. A lot of people won’t say anything about it. That was my problem. I kept it in. It made me really depressed. But if you tell people about it, it relieves so much stress,” he says.

Dominic’s family says they hope that by telling their story, they’ll draw more attention to a social issue that’s all too common.

They say it would also be nice if it prompts the school to issue an apology.
Bullying in N.B. schools

There have been several cases of bullying reported in New Brunswick schools recently.

A mother came forward recently to tell her daughter’s story about how she was bullied at Fredericton High School several years ago.

The bullying became so bad that she hired a bodyguard for her daughter.

A teen at Leo Hayes High School, which is also in Fredericton, was pulled from the school because he was being bullied by another student.

As well, an Oromocto mother said her seven-year-old daughter received a death threat from a middle school student while on the school bus.

Education Minister Jody Carr has promised stronger anti-bullying laws will be introduced in the province.

CBC – Bullied Saint John boy given full-time attendant

How is it that kids get bullied for years? Friends don’t see? Teachers never notice? Parents never know?

Bully crap.

According to PinkShirtDay.ca, a child is bullied every seven seconds in Canada. Kids Help Phone reports up to half of young people are bullied and about 65% are cyberbullied, while 85% of incidents are witnessed by other students.

Online bullying may be on the rise at the hand of social media, but fighting back against it is also on the rise because of social media and “digital-first responders.” They are the first on the scene — an everyday person who reaches out to those in need with care and support.

While W. Brett Wilson is known as a corporate philanthropist and former Dragon on CBC’s Dragons’ Den, he’s perhaps lesser known for being bullied as a kid.

Now, Wilson, along with such celebrities as Lady Gaga and Perez Hilton, is a digital-first influencer, as he uses the web as a way to help put a stop to bullying.

“It is a powerful tool. It’s hard to evaluate the impact, because social media is about raising awareness. It’s not about outcomes or dollars,” he said in a phone interview. “When it comes to charity, I always raise awareness before I raise money.”

Wilson notes the definition of bullying is a lot broader than what many think. “Until we understand what it constitutes, it’s hard to deal with it.”

In order to deal with it, we can’t be afraid to address it.

Kids Help Phone reports that when a bystander intervenes within 10 seconds, more than half the time the behaviour stops immediately. “

Just as drunk driving became socially unacceptable through strong campaigns and advocacy, first responders are leading the way to challenge the cultural normalization of bullying and speak out for those who are in the least position of power to do so,” the counselling service reports.

A national survey in the U.S. showed peers helped victims most just by spending time with them and sharing advice. And that’s exactly what’s going on online.

A year ago “Meet Jade” went viral on YouTube.

A young girl confessed her life as a victim as she displayed note cards to music: “I look happy. Don’t I. I’m not.” Countless young people were inspired and responded to her with videos.
http://youtu.be/eOd7QaDmBEM

In December, in what seems to be a confessional influenced by Jade, Jonah Mowry posted a video, “Whats going on..” [sic].

http://youtu.be/eOd7QaDmBEM
He cries and presents a series of note cards to music: “I’ve cut … a lot. I have scars. Suicide was an option … many times.”

With more than 9 million views (fuelled by celebrity outreach), thousands of people reached out to support Mowry with videos of their own sad or happy stories. Digital-first responders.

Things may have been different for 11-year-old Mitchell Wilson had more people responded to him. The Pickering boy committed suicide last September, days before he was to testify against his accused bully.

It was alleged that the 13-year-old suspect attacked Wilson, who suffered from muscular dystrophy, while he was out for a walk in November 2010, slamming the boy’s head against the sidewalk and stealing his iPhone. From then on the bully’s friends taunted Wilson too.

The accused was acquitted.

Every year in Canada, 300 kids end their own lives, due in some part to being bullied. It is tragic that the most well-known faces of these victims are the dead ones. It doesn’t have to be this way.

As the movie Bully opened nationwide this past weekend, giving us a glimpse into the horrifying world of bullied kids, the fight is gaining ground. Over the past year, Bullyingcanada.ca says young people (and parents) are reaching out more than ever before. The other week alone the organization received approximately 600 chat requests and about 2,000 email support requests.

Don’t wait for a child to ask for help. Many won’t.

It’s important to note that digital-first responders don’t replace counsellors and don’t replace police, but they are bringing a new face to bullying – an about face.

Toronto Sun – E-liminating bullying

Celebrated on the second Wednesday of April, the International Day of Pink got its start in Nova Scotia when two high school students noticed a gay student being bullied for his pink shirt in 2007. The students were able to stop the cruel remarks but felt that something more needed to be done. A few days later, they convinced students at the school to all arrive wearing pink, banding together against homophobic bullying.

Last year, Ecole elementaire publique Michaelle-Jean was the first grade school in Ottawa to celebrate Day of Pink — a day when communities across the globe unite in celebration of diversity and raising awareness to stop homophobic, transphobic and all other forms of bullying by wearing pink.

“The message is extremely important,” said Jeremy Dias, founder of Jer’s Vision, a Canadian youth diversity initiative whose goal is to start dialogue to engage students about anti-bullying and anti-discrimination.

Continuing its ongoing support of the message behind wearing pink, the school teamed up with Jer’s Vision to plan the event in which students from grades 3 to 8 performed a song and dance in Ottawa’s downtown core.

Principal Martine Charbonneau said her school’s involvement is “fantastic.”

“It’s important because it teaches children, the future of our society, to be confident and to have self-esteem, and to gain these things without intimidation,” Charbonneau said.

Canada.com – Pink shirts bring anti-bullying message to Parliament Hill

The brawny officer opened up Tuesday about his own victimization at the hands of bullies during the launch of the Guelph Police Anti-Bullying Strategy. In elementary school, bullies derided him with the nickname “Fatty Pflug” and made him fear for his life.

A number of officers, a leading anti-bullying crusader and a recently bullied brass bear, all wore pink T-shirts for the launch in front of Macdonald Stewart Art Centre. The gallery’s Begging Bear was pushed over about a year ago and damaged.

The police strategy includes support for Alix Vander Vlugt’s Speak Out organization, and its Pink Shirt Day, which goes Wednesday.

“When I was in Grade 5,” Pflug told the morning gathering, “these two gentlemen literally beat the snot out of me. They left me lying there in the snow, and I remember thinking, ‘What’s going to happen here?’”

Speaking of his own victimization, Pflug said he felt alone, traumatized, silenced, devalued and worthless.

Encouraged by a beloved football coach who told him he could overcome the “paralyzing fear” and fulfill his athletic potential, Pflug took up body building and physical fitness. He was no longer willing to fear for his life or tolerate the derisive nickname. He went on to play university-level football.

In partnership with Winmar and local school boards, Guelph Police launched the strategy as a way of showing support for ongoing anti-bullying campaigns. Officers that work in schools will wear the pink T-shirts on Wednesday, as will senior members of the police service’s administration.

“This is just to show support for those who have been bullied, and let them know their voice is being heard,” Pflug said in an interview. “In partnership with Alix, we want to show a sign of solidarity and say that Guelph is going to be a city that is not going to stand for bullying, and we are going to try to eradicate it.”

Pflug pointed out that about 31 per cent of students in Ontario report being bullied – roughly 311,000 kids.

“I feel that number is climbing,” Vander Vlugt said in an interview. “I’ve seen that number lower before. That is way too many people being bullied.”

He said a lot of bullying takes place online. Racist and homophobic attacks and intimidation are playing out over the Internet. Bullying leads to a host of problems for the victim, from depression to eating disorders, Vander Vlugt said. Suicide is too often the outcome.

“More and more people are feeling the effects of bullying online,” he said. “They might be able to dodge it in person, and know who their bully is. But all of a sudden they are targeted online, where they are the victim of threats and rumours. And that is getting worse. Hopefully we can counter that with our awareness programs.”

Guelph Police will also sponsor the No Bullying Tour of leading American anti-bullying coach Travis Brown, known as Mr. Mojo. He will spend three days visiting local schools from May 1 to 3.

“The neat thing with his training syllabus is he talks to bullies in the audience, he talks to the victims, but he also talks to the bystanders,” Pflug said. “He is going to try to empower them to stand up and say, you can’t do this anymore. Hopefully bystanders will take more of an active role in stopping bullying when it’s occurring and prevent it from occurring in the future.”

Vander Vlugt, a former Guelph CVI student now studying in Montreal, said what is most needed to combat bullying is a “climate of respect” in schools. There is an urgent need for students to take leadership roles and become role models for younger students. A “no tolerance environment” must be constantly fostered, in which bullies are “called out” and stopped, he said.

Guelph Mercury – Anti-bullying strategy launched by Guelph Police

Students and staff are being encouraged to wear pink for the third official event of the school year devoted to pink as a symbol of bullying prevention. Schools also participated in Bullying Awareness and Prevention Week in November, and Pink Shirt Day February 29.

Two KPR high schools – Cobourg District Collegiate Institute East in Cobourg and Thomas A. Stewart Secondary School in Peterborough – have even expanded on the Day of Pink to plan an entire week of activities centred on diversity, inclusion, acceptance and bullying prevention.

According to the national Day of Pink website, April 11 “is the international day against bullying, discrimination, homophobia and transphobia in schools and communities.”

“Special days such as these offer a concrete way to recognize the bullying awareness and prevention efforts that take place in our schools day to day,” says Diane Lloyd, Chairperson of the Board. “We do not consider bullying to be acceptable under any circumstances. It is a societal issue that requires everyone’s attention, every day. We encourage parents to learn more about what the Board is doing about bullying, through the Parent Guides for Learning section of our website at www.kprschools.ca.”

“We strongly encourage parents to let teachers and principals know right away if their child is being bullied,” notes Rusty Hick, Director of Education. “Bullies are often at their worst when they know there are no adults around to witness the bullying. Cyber-bullying also takes place without the knowledge of adults, in most cases. We want to know about all incidents of bullying, so that we can take steps to address the problem, to ensure there is support for victims, and to provide consequences for the bullies.”

“There are many avenues for parents and students to report bullying, whether they are the victim or a witness,” explains Martin Twiss, Superintendent responsible for Safe, Caring and Restorative Schools efforts system-wide. “They can speak confidentially with a teacher, principal or vice-principal, or express their concerns in writing. Many schools have bullying phone lines or confidential mailboxes. In addition, students and parents from all schools have access to the Report Bullying weblink, accessible from the home page of www.kprschools.ca They can use this to report incidents either anonymously, or by name.”

Staff and students at many schools throughout the Board – such as Ontario Street Public School in Bowmanville, Orono PS in Orono, C.R. Gummow PS in Cobourg, Plainville PS in Gores Landing and Crestwood SS in Peterborough – will be wearing pink. Staff at the Education Centre also will sport t-shirts introduced by KPR last November, bearing the words Respect, Accept, Include.

Cobourg District Collegiate Institute East’s week-long celebration will begin with Rainbow Day, Tuesday, April 10. Gay Straight Alliance members will hand out rainbow hearts with the slogan, “Wear your heart on your sleeve and make bullying Leave”. On Wednesday, the Day of Pink, pink ribbons will be given out to those without a pink shirt. Thursday, a bake sale with pink and rainbow-coloured goodies will raise funds for the ABBY Foundation. Friday, April 13 will be a Day of Silence, to experience what it is like for individuals to have a voice that is not heard by others. Friday afternoon will close with an afternoon assembly titled Facebook Follies.

Thomas A. Stewart SS’s Be as Good as Gold Day Tuesday will focus on wearing gold in honour of the Golden Rule; an Everyone Belongs! event with the Amigos group and t-shirt tie-dying also will occur at lunch. Wednesday will see an anti-bullying/anti-homophobia assembly for Grade 9s, and a Pink Portrait on the school steps. Thursday, TAS Colours Day, will follow the motto “everyone moves to the beat of their own drum”; the Dixieland Jazz Band will play in the cafeteria and students will receive TAS “tattoos”. Friday, April 13 will be Rainbow Colours Day, with a photo booth, encouragement for students to Mix it Up and students wearing tie-dye or Queer Positive Space (QPS) shirts. QPS is a group of students who reach out broadly to include the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities and other supportive people.

Clarke High School’s most recent newsletter for parents included a bounty of helpful tips for parents and guardians on bullying. That newsletter is still posted on the school’s website at http://clarke.kprdsb.ca/

At Armour Heights PS in Peterborough, ABC (the Anti-Bullying Club) will hold an assembly on the Day of Pink, Wednesday at 1:50 p.m. Each class will present a skit, play or song that displays one of Kelso’s Choices for positive behaviour. The Junior Kindergarten class will perform the Kelso Rap, with assistance from their Grade 8 Reading Buddies.

The student leadership team at John M. James PS, Bowmanville, will be presenting two assemblies on the Day of Pink, April 11, at 11:05 a.m. and 11:45 a.m. Student leaders surveyed their peers about bullying, and interviewed students about their views. The resulting video presentation will be shown to the entire school. Meanwhile, students and staff at Vincent Massey PS, Bowmanville, will gather for an aerial group photo of everyone in pink.

At Hillcrest PS, Campbellford, the Grade 2/3 class researched the Day of Pink and came up with unique ideas to mark the day. The students will be wearing pink shirts, making and racing pink cars, creating pink anti-bullying signs, painting masterpieces using only pink paint, having a relay race with pink feathers, and writing pink poems.

Northumberland View – KPR Schools Focus On Bullying Prevention For Day Of Pink April 11

Workplace harassment in Canada is taking on new forms and new faces as demographics shift, according to a recent Leger Marketing study commissioned by the Queen’s School of Business.

Though Mad Men’s central characters Don Draper and his associates continue to personify the typical face of workplace harassment, a new group of workplace bullies is emerging.

“Men alone are the predominant perpetrators – but when women are bullies, they tend to choose to bully other women,” says Jana Raver, an organizational behaviour expert and associate professor at the Queen’s School of Business. “They’re twice as likely to pick another woman as they are to pick a man. This is somewhat surprising, and in some ways it goes along with what you hear colloquially, but on the other hand people are saying, ‘shouldn’t women be supporting each other? What’s going on here?’ ”

Kristina Hidas, vice-president of human resources research and development for the Human Resources Professionals Association (HRPA) says the results of the Queen’s research mirror trends her organization has been seeing among younger-aged girls who have become more comfortable with bullying other girls.

“It’s carrying over [from younger ages],” she says. “We’re seeing a reduction in privacy levels and I see this as a continuation.”

Raver says that while the study did not delve into the reasons why women tend to single out other women for harassment, part of the reason may relate to their perception of men as being traditionally powerful and therefore more difficult to target, while women – who have traditionally held less power in the business world – are easier to bully.

Another explanation, says Raver, could be that harassment of women by women may in some instances be an outcome of a higher density of women in a particular workplace.

Whatever the reason, most incidents of harassment continue to go unreported because reporting harassment is always “shameful, guilt-ridden and humiliating” for the victim, says Hidas.

Across Canada, provincial legislators have been working to broaden the scope and definition of workplace harassment to ensure it encompasses all forms of potential aggression in the workplace, including upset-ting and unwelcome comments so that workplaces maintain an overarching culture of civility and decorum.

Raver says one of these newly emerging trends includes gender harassment of men who don’t demonstrate the stereotypical or traditional character traits of their gender.

“Men who take paternity leaves or who don’t have stereotypically male traits or men who are homosexual are reporting much higher levels of harassment from men for being counter-normative to their gender.”

Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/business/Women+join+bullying+ranks/6425135/story.html#ixzz1reZtLrrn

Vancouver Sun – Women join bullying ranks