First youth conference day deemed a success

BY RAFFY BOUDJIKANIAN

raffy.boudjikanian@transcontinental.ca

Over 140 school and social work professionals filled up a hall at Pierrefonds Cultural Centre last Thursday for a workshop by the Table de Concertation Jeunesse de l'Ouest de l'Ile (West Island youth roundtable) on bullying, cyber-bullying, street gangs, drugs and alcohol.

"The Internet is like allowing a stranger to walk through your door, past your bedroom, and right into your child's room," said Corrie Sirota-Frankel, a guest lecturer from Jewish Family Services.

Cyber-bullying is wider-reaching than traditional bullying, she said. "Home used to be a safe haven," she explained, since bullying did not continue there, but now it does due to Internet access.

Frankel explained that the Internet is often thought of as e-mail exchanges, but that there is a lot more going on. Two weeks ago, when two girls from Henri Bourassa High School went to Lester B. Pearson High School and beat up other students there, someone used her cell phone to record the event. A video later wound up on the popular website youtube.com. "If I had a cell phone, I would have called 911!" Frankel said.

According to her, children are growing up with technology faster than their parents, and that the latter's responsibility and vigilance should increase.

"It is not OK to give your child a cell phone and say 'happy birthday,'" she said.

At the school level, Frankel said that restrictions should be imposed on web access. "Schools should verify what kind of access their students have to the Internet, IM (Instant Messaging) and chat rooms."

Bernard Desrochers, clinical services director at the web and phone-based help centre Jeunesse J'Écoute (Youth, I'm listening), spoke about traditional bullying.

"Just because some schools look like they don't have bullying problems does not mean that they don't," Desrochers said. Data based on video and audio recorded during recesses in schools has allowed researchers to study bullying from the children's own point of view, Desrochers said. According to these results, adults only see about seven to ten per cent of total bullying that goes on, whereas children see 85 per cent.

Desrochers said it is crucial for parents not to ignore the harm that bullying may cause.

Both Desrochers and Frankel emphasized the importance of telling bullies about the very serious consequences that can arise from their actions. The conference also included two other workshops, focusing on street gangs and on drugs and alcohol dependence. Several schools and community organizations sent representatives to attend, such as Mcdonald High, Beaconsfield High School, Jacques Bizard High School, Félix Leclerc, St. Thomas, John Rennie, the West Island CLSCs and others.

Event co-ordinator Mireille Abadie said she was very happy with the results. "Everyone had really positive feedback," she said. "Although it's too early to decide if we will have another such event next year."

The Table de concertation jeunesse includes several member organizations, such as the Pierrefonds/Roxboro and St.Geneviève/Ile Bizard boroughs, the City of Pointe-Claire, Montreal police, the West Island YMCA, Scouts Canada, and others.