Beyond wearing pink, what can we do to overcome bullying?
Credit to Author: Cheryl Song| Date: Wed, 27 Feb 2019 05:42:32 +0000
It’s Pink Shirt Day in Canada, a day to stand up against bullying
Pink Shirt Day, on February 27, 2019, is a day when people wear pink in solidarity to symbolize taking a stand against bullying. Pink Shirt Day originated in Nova Scotia, Canada, when a group of students stood up for a student being bullied for wearing a pink shirt to school.
Why is Pink Shirt Day important?
Bullying is a serious issue that many people and kids experience at schools, workplaces, communities or online. Bullying is more than a physical attack or being shoved into lockers. Bullying behaviours include being teased, tormented, excluded and ignored. It could mean spreading hurtful rumours in person or online. While physical wounds can heal with time, other types of bullying can cause permanent emotional scars and negative lasting effects. In severe cases, bullying can lead to depression or even suicide when victims feel helpless and suffer in silence.
While wearing pink to raise awareness about anti-bullying is a good first step, there are many things we as parents can do to help our kids deal with bullying.
What can we do as parents to prevent bullying?
Empowerment and education are key to bully prevention. Here are some strategies to consider.
- Educate your children about the different types of bullying and emphasize that bullying behaviours will be not tolerated. Learn about the rules and laws against bullying.
- Discuss with your children proactive plans if they are being bullied, or if they witness bullying. Brainstorm potential bullying scenarios and possible solutions, and role play how to handle these difficult situations. Also, consider registering children in self-defense or nonviolent conflict resolution strategies courses.
- Be your children’s trusted figure, making them feel safe and comfortable to discuss any issues of bullyinh. Build children’s confidence and a positive sense of self by regularly encouraging and cheering them on. Observe and listen to children, and watch for any changes in their behaviours.
- Help children identify a list of trusted people whom they can turn to when encountering bullying situations. Some good options include teachers, school principal, counsellors, peers or settlement workers.
- Teach children positive social skills strategies. If they are learning English, start with basic socialization phrase in English, in order to help them to make new friends in Canada. Coach children on ways to approach new people, how to start and hold a conversation, and most importantly, how to make new friends and be a good friend.
- Model and provide positive reinforcement for any act of kindness and compassion. Teach children to notice and reach out to others who are being excluded or alone, as well as speak up and support bullying victims.
- Lastly, do not be afraid to seek help and speak up against bullying. There are many anti-bullying resources, as well as school administrators, teachers, advocates, support groups that families can access for additional support.
We all need to take a positive stand against bullying. In a world where we can be anything, let’s be kind and compassionate. By working together, we can take positive actions toward injustice by speaking up and taking steps to making the world a better place, with one smile, one kind word and action at a time.