Pink Shirt Day: take a stand against bullying
February 24 marks Pink Shirt Day - symbolizing that bullying is not tolerated. Bullying is an issue that can take place in schools, homes, on the Internet and in the workplace.
Pink Shirt Day started with two boys from Nova Scotia, David Shepherd and Travis Price. The two boys took a stand against bullying when they saw a grade 9 student being bullied for wearing a pink shirt.
We bring you some information from AboutKidsHealth about the types of bullying that could occur
It is important to know the signs and symptoms of a child who is being bullied.
- Physical bullying includes pushing, hitting, kicking, or throwing things at someone. Taking or breaking someone’s things or threatening to harm someone are just some examples of physical bullying.
- Social bullying involves spreading rumours, breaking up friendships, leaving someone out of activities on purpose and telling someone not to be friends with someone.
- Cyber bullying can be taking pictures of someone without permission and posting them on the internet or sending mean e-mails, instant messages, and text messages.
- Racial/ethnic bullying involves treating people badly because of their racial or ethnic background and/or saying bad things about a cultural background. Calling someone racist names or telling racist jokes are two examples.
- Sexual bullying examples can be leaving someone out, treating them badly, or making them feel uncomfortable because they are a boy or girl. This can involve making sexist comments, touching, pinching or grabbing someone in a sexual way, as well as making crude comments about someone’s sexual behaviour, spreading sexual rumours and calling someone mean names because of their sexual orientation.
It should be noted that some of these forms of bullying (particularly sexual, physical and racial) may also constitute criminal offences, or human rights violations.
Signs of bullying:
It is important to know the signs and symptoms of a child who is being bullied. Children who are being bullied may exhibit behaviour such as:
- Not wanting to go to school
- Not wanting to participate in extra-curricular activities
- Feeling anxious
- Feeling fearful
- Having low self-esteem
The signs and symptoms of a child who bullies are just as important. Children who bully may:
- feel little concern for others’ feelings
- not recognize the impact of their behaviour on others
- be aggressive with siblings, parents, teachers, friends and animals
A child who bullies needs help learning how to use their power in a positive way, stay cool when having a problem and think about how the other person feels.
More signs and symptoms can be found at AboutKidsHealth.
Tips on how to talk to children about bullying:
If they are being bullied:
- Tell your parents
- Tell an adult at school
- Be assertive: tell the bully to stop and stand up to that child
- Do not be aggressive: do not fight back as this can make the bullying worse
If they see bullying:
- Tell your parents
- Tell an adult at school
- Help the student being bullied
- Get someone to help you stop the bullying
- Tell the child to stop bullying, only if you feel safe
This February teach your child about bullying, stand up against bullying and don’t forget - wear pink on February 24.
Resources:
AboutKidsHealth Bullying Page
Pink Shirt Day Website
