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What to do about bullying
Editorial Comment
Roxanna Thompson
Deh Cho Drum
Thursday, July 12, 2007
If you've spent any length of time around youth you know that they aren't always little angels.

Starting from a young age, children can show an incredible capacity for cruelty towards each other. This antisocial behaviour can take on a variety of forms and one of them is bullying.

In movies and on television shows, bullying is often portrayed in a jovial manner. Kids with thick-framed glasses and slicked back hair are often picked on by their more lumbering classmates. Common forms of bullying in those circumstances include loss of lunches and lunch money, being shoved into lockers, wedgies and even being hung from coathooks on doors.

Bullying can look cute on the silver screen but dealing with it in real life is a different story.

Recently a group of parents and concerned community members joined together in Fort Simpson to develop a shared approach that can be used throughout the community to reduce bullying.

The committee members are choosing to tread on precarious ground.

On one side there are parents who likely don't want to hear that their child is a bully. No one wants to think badly about their children and most parents will avoid or deny evidence that offers proof.

On the other side are parents whose children are being bullied. Many are already on edge because their child is going through something that they'd like to protect them from.

The school system and teachers are often stuck in the middle. Because youth spend so much time in school it's almost inevitable that some sort of bullying will take place. Children then get upset leading to parents getting upset and teachers receive criticism from both sides. It's no wonder that schools are viewed as dealing with the issue poorly.

Another dark side of bullying is the question of what people are being bullied about.

If race is at the bottom of most of the taunts then things get even messier. Parents will break into groups along racial lines and accuse the other side of having intolerant children who are out of control.

All this leads to is hard feelings all around, closed doors of communication and children who aren't sure what message they should be listening to.

The people who have joined the committee in Fort Simpson, however, are on to something.

They recognize that bullying happens around the world and that admitting it doesn't make Fort Simpson a bad place to live. They also know that pretending bullying doesn't happen won't make it go away.

The members also realize that bullying isn't something that stops the second children and youth leave the schoolyard. Bullying can go on anywhere and is caused by a variety of situations.

By taking a holistic view, the committee has a shot at creating a plan that could actually work to deter bullying.

What it will come down to is what the rest of the community really wants.

If adults, teenagers and children alike want to put an end to bullying and can put aside their differences, then progress will be made.

If hackles stay raised then the status quo will continue.


Respect for the dead
Editorial Comment
Dez Loreen
Inuvik News
Thursday, July 12, 2007

No doubt by now you've all heard about the cemetery restoration project being done by the Town of Inuvik. While this is a controversial issue, I feel it's important that this work be done.

The site we chose to be the final resting place for many of our loved ones is not stable and is in dire need of attention.

There are drainage issues and that affects us every year. The snow melts and leaves a lot of water that wasn't moving anywhere.

I was through the site last week and saw the remnants of the water runoff. It was a small puddle that will soon be gone.

An area that runs parallel with the graves was recently dug up and a new culvert is now in place.

Signs like that steel culvert re-affirm that the town office is working hard to fix the problems and should be commended for its work.

The mayor says that the grave markers will be replaced in the exact spots they came from, with the aid of GPS and surveying technology.

It is important that the town office be aware that they are walking on spiritual ground.

Many people and many religious beliefs hold respect for the deceased in high regard.

I know that the crews don't mean any disrespect to those whose graves they are working around. I know that they are simply doing a job that needs doing.

At the same time, I expect that people who are working in the cemetery should treat every cross and grave marker with the same dignity that they would a person.

Those markers are what we use to remember those loved ones who aren't with us anymore.

The process of the work includes moving and replacing the old crosses with new ones.

But the sight of old crosses left in a pile by the side of the shed was wrenching.

Families placed those crosses in order to honour someone's memory. I doubt they'd appreciate seeing their loved one's name in the dirt.

My two grandparents are buried in that cemetery beside each other. Our family put hard work into those graves.

We did it during a difficult time in our lives and I feel that it helped as part of the grieving process.

I know that there are a lot of people reading this who aren't from here and don't have family buried in that cemetery. But I hope you understand the importance of being respectful.

During a town council meeting on Monday night, a man came forward with his concerns to share with our councillors. He told them that he was shocked to see his daughter's grave without a marker.

"I know you mean well and your hearts are in the right places, but what's done is done," he said.

He also saw the pile of crosses that were on the side of the cemetery.

It's a sensitive issue and I know that people have been up in arms about this.

After talking with members of town council, I can tell you they are sincere in their actions. They want the best for our community, including our deceased.

Remember that though it might not look too appealing now, soon the cemetery will be one we can all be proud of.

Wednesday, July 11, 2007


North grieves young soldier

Peace is not an easy goal. It takes brave men and women to stand up to those who would bring chaos and destruction.

Not since the Korean War has Canada had to mourn the loss of our sons and daughters in combat. While each of the deaths of the 66 young men and women killed in Afghanistan since 2002 is felt to some degree across the country, the July 4 death of Cpl. Jordan Anderson has hit the North.

Cpl. Anderson was the 25-year-old son of James and Sheila Anderson of Yellowknife. He was born in Iqaluit, lived in Kugaaruk, Tuktoyaktuk and Inuvik. He moved away to attend high school in Saskatchewan and joined the army at age 19, rising to the rank of corporal with the 3rd battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry.

Jordan was in Afghanistan for his second tour, scheduled to return home in August. A roadside bomb killed him and five other Canadians and an Afghan interpreter. It was the biggest improvised explosive device ever aimed at Canadian troops in Afghanistan.

He died serving his country, trying to bring security to an impoverished country that served as a staging ground for the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. He died fighting an enemy that doesn't distinguish between military and civilian targets, that uses suicide bombers and other weapons to create fear and bring death.

No words or tributes will ever replace this young man in the hearts of his family and friends. We hope they find some measure of solace in the fact we all share their grief.

One thing is also for sure, this coming Remembrance Day will have an even deeper meaning for everyone.


Good neighbours make... good neighbours

Weed whacking is something of which neighbours usually approve. It keeps the neighbourhood tidy and improves sightlines.

But when your neighbour is the city of Yellowknife and their approach to weed whacking is to clear out a metres-wide swath to the lake using heavy machinery which not only leaves behind a carpet of tree bits but spits chunks of wood 150 feet uphill onto your lawn, you get annoyed.

The city needs to keep the drainage ditch off School Draw Avenue clear. It's part of a management strategy to reduce the chance of flooding.

But at the very least public works should have stuck a few letters in a few mailboxes to notify neighbours about the impending work, so people would have known to duck and cover when the machine revved up and the wood chunks started to fly.

And if the public works staff were really ambitious they could have cleaned up a bit afterwards, so the area wouldn't look so much like a couple dozen trees had exploded, raining their remnants over the neighbourhood.

It's about being a good neighbour. We hope the city of Yellowknife has learned from the School Draw Avenue residents' complaints, and adds some neighbourly finesse to their necessary and appreciated works projects.


Good politics start with respect
Editorial Comment
Christine Grimard
Kivalliq News
Wednesday, July 11, 2007

As many of you have likely read, MLA for Rankin Inlet North Tagak Curley has joined Lynda Gunn, the CEO of the Nunavut Association of Municipalities and the mayor of Iqaluit Elisapee Sheutiapik in asking for the Premier's resignation.

This comes after Premier Paul Okalik was overheard calling the CEO of the Nunavut Association of Municipalities a "f—ing bitch," at the Expo Labrador 2007 Conference and Trade Exhibition.

Okalik has since apologized both in writing and on the phone to Gunn.

That Okalik apologized can be recognized and appreciated.

However, the fact that Nunavut's most prominent government figure is confident enough to make these comments in the first place should not be tolerated.

These kinds of comments are a strong sign of disrespect for women.

The only reassuring words I can offer to Gunn are that this kind of behaviour by male leaders is disgustingly accepted at the national level. In 1985, Member of Parliament Sheila Copps was told by a Conservative MP, "just quiet down baby," in response to a question.

In 1990 she was called a "slut" by Tory MP Bill Kempling and a "bitch" by Reform MP Ian McCelland.

Yes, but that was a long time ago, you may say, surely federal politics have improved by now. I wish this were the case.

When Belinda Stronach crossed the floor in 2005, politicians once again fell to demeaning, sexist comments.

Provincial MP Bob Runciman told a Toronto radio station that, "She sort of defined herself as something of a dipstick, an attractive one, but still a dipstick."

Alberta MLA Tony Abbott accused Stronach of "whoring herself out for power."

Most publicized, were comments allegedly made by fellow MP Peter MacKay referring to Stronach as a dog.

Important to note is that none of these backwards, demeaning comments led to the resignation of any of these male politicians. Is this just how politics goes?

Is childish behaviour tolerated across the board? While sexist behaviour might be, accepting insults as part of political life isn't.

Remember Liberal MP Carolyn Parish was expelled from the caucus after stepping on a George Bush doll during a televised comedy skit. Why wasn't anyone calling for the resignation of those other overtly sexist politicians?

One look at parliament and you'll understand why. Full of white, male lawyers, Canada stands 47th in the world for female representation in Parliament.

That's below Uganda, Rwanda, Afghanistan and Iraq. While Canada boasts having one female Prime Minister, remember Kim Campbell was not elected into the job, but took the position after the resignation of Brian Mulroney.

This country has yet to have a woman elected as Prime Minister. The Liberal party has never elected a woman leader and the Conservative party hasn't seen one since Kim Campbell.

It's time to stand up and make a point. Women are half of this country's population, but only one fifth of its political representation.

This will never change as long as we let the old boys club get away with comments like this.

- Darrell Greer, the regular editor of the Kivalliq News, returns July 16.