Wednesday, February 22, 2017

Pink Shirt Day 2017



I don't have much time to blog today, but I do need to say this before I rush off into the crazy world that we have made for ourselves.

At a time when Donald Trump is apparently preparing to reverse protections for transgender students. 

At a time when our own Cons can't bring themselves to use the word Islamophobia, even after the horror of that mosque massacre in Quebec City.

At a time when it seems that right-wing bullies are out of control all over the world,  I'm glad that today is Pink Shirt Day.



A day to fight bullying, that is now marked all over the world, but began right here in Canada.


And is something we should all be proud about.

But of course, we've still got a long way to go in this country before the bullies are finally beaten.

Thousands of children's lives are still blighted by bullying, and far too many kids are driven to kill themselves because of the cruel actions of others.



While too many look on and do nothing.

And if anyone thinks that bullying is just a problem for the young, they should think again.

For many helpless seniors are also victimized by bullies. It's becoming a real problem and one that can only get worse as the population ages.

So as this video says, we need to hammer home the message that kindness lasts a lifetime...



Support this campaign.

Demand that governments do more to publicize and fight the problem.

Speak out for the bullied, beat the bullies.

Help build a better world...

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thank you for a very thoughtful post Simon. Having endured my fair share of bullying growing up and now enduring bullies in the workplace, this post has been the final push I needed to file a formal complaint against these despicable people. They will attempt payback but you know what? What used to make me fear saying anything now fills me with the resolve to expose these people for who and what they are and hopefully it eases the burden for others to speak out.
Enough is enough!!
JD

Anonymous said...

Great post Simon. I was bullied relentlessly in elementary and high school. I pretty much failed grade 9 on purpose to get away from them. School's administrators need to be held accountable, far too often they turn a blind eye or say "boys will be boys".

Thank God there was no such things as Facebook or social media back then, at least the bullying would stop once I left the school. Today our youth are all online and there's been far too many cases of students taking their own lives. Rehtaeh Parsons and Amanda Todd are two cases right here in Canada that come to mind. RIP.

I can only imagine how many kids dropped out of school or never reached their full potential because of this epidemic. It needs to be dealt with immediately.

Thank you.

-MC

jrkrideau said...

Blast, I no longer own a pink shirt or I would be wearing it. Thanks for bringing this to my attention.

My general approach to bullies since I was bullied for a couple of years in grade school is to grab some blunt object and charge. Not exactly the best approach, well probably totally irrational, but I learned it in a hard school of bullies and it has worked.

I do NOT recommend it for anyone else and it has seriously messed up my ability to deal with hostility in the workplace.

Anonymous said...

Fuck Donald Trump

Anonymous said...

Thank you for this. More people should write about bullying. It's still a big problem !

Simon said...

hi JD...I'm sorry to hear that you have been bothered by bullies in your workplace. This is what happens when our society doesn't do enough to nip bullying in the bud. Instead it's seen as just a phase in life that that people leave behind them. When in fact, as that video shows, it can follow you into adulthood, and the bullies can be found even in senior homes. So it's important to stand up to them, and I would encourage everyone to do that. So good luck, stay cool, make sure that your case against them is well prepared, and don't let them intimidate you further. I used to have two graphics in my sidebar. One was a sign saying this is a bully-free zone, and the other one said bullies will be beaten. We will never have a better world until both become reality, and enough is enough....

Simon said...

hi MC...I'm sorry to hear that you were bullied school, and I'm not surprised if you didn't get any support from teachers and administrators. I recently read that while seventy percent of teachers though they were doing a good job controlling bullies, only twenty percent of the kids did. That was my experience too, and you're right. These days thanks to social media there is no escaping them. I've written several posts about the tragic cases of Rehtaeh Parsons and Amanda Todd, and so many others. And while some progress has been made, I would like to see both the federal and provincial governments come up with a national strategy to fight bullying. When I'm in the UK I see all kinds of anti-bullying ads TV, or in the newspapers. But hardly any here, and that needs to change. A society should fight bullying wherever it rears its ugly head, and as hard as it fights things like drinking and driving...

Simon said...

hi jrkrideau...I have to admit that I don't have a pink shirt, so I was wearing a faded red one yesterday. And I also have to admit that like you I used violence to fight violence. I wasn't the slightest bit interested in fighting when I was a small boy, but starting at the age of twelve or thirteen I started studying judo and karate, as well as applying some of the techniques of the Glasgow School of Street Fighting, and with the help of some others we did end our bully problem. However, I too would not recommend that approach. Violence is a dead end, and can get you into more trouble than the bullies themselves. Martial arts gave me the confidence not to back down. But I found other more peaceful ways to fight bullies, and they inspire me to this day...

Simon said...

hi anon...hmmm...I know what you mean. But can't we just defeat him instead? ;)

Simon said...

hi anon...you're welcome. I used to write a lot more about bullying when I first started blogging, but then I started focusing more and more on bullies like Harper and some of his other Cons.
But I am going to start writing more posts about the problem, as well as trying to get my MP to pressure the government into coming up with a national strategy which in my opinion is still badly needed....