Changing bullying one child at a time; Does anybody know?

On March 10, 2011 the US government set up an anti-bullying policy making principals responsible for students’ activities on and off school property including social media. There are some privacy concerns with this policy but in my opinion I believe that students should refrain from bullying behavior always, regardless if it's within the walls of the school or not. The fact that this issue was addressed by a Federal government signifies how important it is that we never sweep this under the rug and the the role social media plays within the lives of our youth of today.
The other day I was sent a “you tube” file that showed one boy being filmed while he bullied another boy that was seemed to be irritated by the situation. It wasn’t a surprise to see the boy being bullied retaliate and physically harm the boy bullying. Some would say that it’s the best way to deal with a person who is bullying, however there are a lot of negative consequences that could arise from that reaction. The actual bullying situation didn’t bother me as much as the bystanders that stood around to see this happening and do nothing to change the situation, even going as far as to film it on an electronic device. The unfortunate truth is that there aren’t any kids using an electronic device to show the internet world someone saving someone from a bad situation.
As we continuosly take players and cheerleaders to schools in the GTA we hope that we can make a difference in one child life that maybe that person that refuses to allow someone to be mistreated. Many people don’t even know about the number of students we have affected mainly because that’s not the information that is published or talked about in public. It is extremely rewarding to hear a school tell us how students talked about the issue of bullying after we have left the school because that tells me that the awareness part of our campaign is working. Not to mention the countless stories from kids via e-mails and schools sending us testimonials. In fact, at a couple of presentations a few students spoke up as to how they were currently being bullied and in some cases almost to a state of extreme depression. The good news is that schools are addressing these situations, the bad news is we need to hear more of the good news to diminish the bad.
Our latest addition to our facebook page the”Huddle Up” tab, will hopefully be the platform and voice students need. Each and every player that has shared his personal stories from the past and present such as Adrion Smith to Ricky Foley is always rewarded to hear how their message has been echoed in the halls and online. In fact, it was never unusual for a student to yell out the acronym “R.A.R.E” which was given to them at an assembly by Adrion Smith. This is the kind of thing that keeps our programs and players desire to be involved so strong. My hope is that we have more people using the internet tools such as our Facebook tab, as the voice of positivity and guidance instead of a weapon of bullying. Please help us by liking us on Facebook and demonstrating that our efforts are not in vain.

“Make your passion your Life and No one can take that away.

Imagine what if…….

Imagine what ifs are always part of football or any sport. What if we scored on the first drive, what if we just stopped them when it was 2nd and 10 or simply what if we made it past Montreal. The “what ifs” in sports are always great to think about, but harmless in nature. However, as I listened to one of Cory Boyd speak about his bullying experiences I began to reflect on some of the other speeches of former Huddle Up players like Chuck Winters who talked about choices and how they mould you for the future. He reaches the students by explaining how he almost never gave football another shot after University. If he never showed up for the Arena football tryout, he would have never made the team and been in touch with Rich Stubler who then brought him to be a part of our 2004 Grey Cup team. Even Pinball who throughout his football career was told you aren’t big enough. Then when he finally made it to the NFL he was released due to injuries. Had he not answered the phone call from Ralph Sazio of the CFL’s Toronto Argonauts he would have probably never been such a big part of our storied franchise, and there is no telling where we would be. Those “what ifs” are a key part of life and specifically our message to youth during the bullying presentations. Personally, if it wasn’t for a bystander stepping up for me I wouldn’t be here at all. Then not making the phone call to the Toronto Argonauts hoping they would have room for one more ball boy. Never would I have imagined that the call 27 years ago would result in me creating a 10 year bullying prevention program affecting over 250,000 students in the Greater Toronto Area. I would hate to think of the “what if” that person never spoke up for me in my high school.
I am quite sure that someone or something in your life has allowed you to carry on in some way and I’d love to hear your “what if” story with how someone or something changed your life.

“Make your passion your Life and No one can take that away.