A Moment with the Mayor: Bullying

May 21, 2024

Moment with the Mayor

The challenge of bullying has faced society since the beginning of time, and it exists in all corners of the world. From family issues to world leaders flexing their military or police muscles on others in their own country or around the world.

Thinking closer to home, many people, young and old, have faced bullying at various levels. For people who have called Canada home forever, threats and bullying have existed long before explorers and settlers began to arrive. With newcomers arriving from all over the world, language, dress and customs often gave the bullies a golden opportunity to make someone else feel smaller or as a lesser person. History tells us bullying has occurred on many fronts and in different periods of time. Waring nations often had the aggressor as the bully; whoever won the battle tended to bully those they had defeated.

As I mentioned earlier, immigrants are often the target of bullies. It may happen in the schoolyard, on a sports field or court or even just the playground. The inability to speak the language where you live is definitely a challenge. There have been stories in the past of adults being bullied to work for less or under unsafe working conditions; this causes them to be exploited for their efforts, labour and service.

Great efforts are being made on many fronts to help address bullying and its effects on all people. Work continues in our school system to help children understand and stand up to bullying. As adults, work continues to help raise awareness of bullying and the harmful effects it causes within our community. From the positive work of organizations such as Mothers Against Bullying and the team at Lloydminster Sexual Assault Services to the annual efforts of the Lloydminster and District Co-op championing “Kindness Wins,” actions are being taken right here to address this challenge.

Bullying looks very different now. Some of the old ways to bully are still used, but with the development of technology, bullying can happen next door or around the world. Many bullies remain faceless on social media and work to destroy people and their futures without any accountability. Many of a bully’s actions contribute to poor mental health, and there can also be struggles with thoughts of suicide or revenge. Neither is a solution to the problem of bullying.

If you are being bullied, reach out for help.

Together, we can make a difference.

Mayor Gerald S. Aalbers
City of Lloydminster

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