Thank you to Tracey Maxfield for her support for Pink Thursday and her stance against bullying. #pink4thursdays
Tracey had shared this message with us:
Why is it important for us to work together to end bullying and racism?
Hi, My name is Tracey and I am no stranger to bullying. From 2011 until 2015, I experienced relentless
workplace bullying culminating in acute depression and suicidal ideation. Bullying changed my life
forever and I know advocate and educate others about bullying in children and teenagers.
A study conducted in 2019, indicated that every 7 minutes, somewhere in the world, a child/teenager
is bullied either on-line and/or in person. Bullying has become so common, so widespread and so
dangerous, that our kids are choosing to die by suicide, also called bullycide, rather than face
another day of continued and relentless bullying, harassment, and intimidation. As we struggled to
support our kids and advocate for changes in schools and in public policy “to say no to bullying” a
new threat arrived, the COVID 19 Pandemic erupted around the globe and just like that, everything
changed. Not only are we dealing with a virus that could potentially kill us, but out of the shadows
emerged another virus, more deadly and damaging than covid 19, racism. Suddenly, children of
Asian descent were subjected to physical assaults, bullying and threats the likes of which we could
never imagine. Across our border, an African American male died at the hands of a policeman and
the full impact of racism reared its ugly head once again, pitting blacks against whites.
Let’s be very clear, racism is a form of bullying, and like bullying, it has no place in today’s world. No
one should ever be judged, disrespected or ignored because of his/her colour of skin, cultural
upbringing, religious beliefs, sexual orientation…we are all human beings living on this planet called
earth, and we are all entitled to being treated with dignity and respect.
The first step to ending bullying and racism begins with each and every one of us. We all have a
role, and together we can make a difference, we can influence change and create the foundations
for a kinder, more supportive and inclusive society