Laureen Harper, wife of Canada’s prime minister, and Ottawa city councillor Allan Hubley praise the programs of Ottawa’s Youth Services Bureau downtown drop-in centre
METRO NEWS OTTAWA, February 11, 2013After years of neglect, youth mental illness is getting the attention it desperately needs, said Laureen Harper as she toured Ottawa’s Youth Services Bureau downtown drop-in centre on February 11, 2013. (more…)
Amanda Todd’s death by suicide—after her video disclosing bullying and harassment —creates a media tsunami
The death by suicide of Amanda Todd, who disclosed in a YouTube video the bullying and harassment she had been experiencing, created a tsunami of media attention. Social media—which was directly involved in her suffering—propelled her story to the front pages of local and national newspapers and websites around the world.
Martin Laba, an associate professor at Simon Fraser University specializing in media and pop culture analysis, told the Maple Ridge News he was surprised by the global impact of Todd’s story. “You’d have to have been living in a hole to have not heard about her story,” he said. “It truly went viral, and was particularly driven by social media.” (more…)
Dany Morin, Member of Parliament, asks for a response to bullying and harassment of children and youth in Canada
Calling the bullying of children and youth “a nation-wide problem,” N.D.P. Member of Parliament Dany Morin has been asking Canada’s government to take action on the problem for a year now. He has introduced a motion, which calls for a national strategy to prevent bullying; it was debated in the House of Commons just days after the high-profile death by suicide of Amanda Todd. (more…)
Chaplain Diane Weber Bederman says Amanda Todd’s death was more about mental health than bullying
In the aftermath of the death by suicide of Amanda Todd, an avalanche of news reports, opinion articles, and social media postings focused on harassment, bullying, violence, and the problems these behaviours pose for individuals and society. Media reports about Amanda Todd’s experiences and state of mind acknowledged that she had described anxiety, depression, and panic disorder. But her death was portrayed as being directly caused by the experience of being bullied. (more…)
As the much-hyped documentary film ‘Bully’ began to roll out across North America, we took a look at local experiences
The Bully Project is the much-anticipated documentary film that follows stories of several kids who are being bullied or have been bullied. Director Lee Hirsch started filming The Bully Project in 2009, about a year before bullying fully came of age as a high-profile crisis with the launch of what became the It Gets Better project. (more…)
NoStigmas raises awareness to erase the stigmas of suicide and mental illness by sharing stories of hope and inspiration
A cross-border partnership to end the stigmas associated with suicide and mental illness has been created under the banner of NoStigmas.org—with participants from both Canada and the U.S. Ottawa-based Ray Folkins has joined Chicago-based Jake Moore in his ongoing efforts to develop collaborative partnership programs to help people implement life-changing and life-enhancing strategies. Both men have ‘lived experience’ with anxiety and depression and are now focused on helping others—and particularly, to help erase the stigmas related to mental health issues among youth and adults. (more…)
