The city of Port Coquitlam will proclaim Feb. 29 Stop Bullying Day and various activities will be coordinated around the municipality to shine a light on the issue of bullying.
This is the fifth year the city has taken part in the national anti-bullying campaign, which started in 2007 after students in Nova Scotia rallied around a boy who was bullied for wearing a pink polo shirt.
Youth will gather at the Hyde Away Youth Centre between 7 and 9 a.m. for a pink-themed breakfast and educational thought-provoking activities. The crowd will be treated to a performance from slam poet and Terry Fox student Jacob Gebrewold and a local youth band called the Faceplants.
In the evening, a special youth dinner will be held at the Hyde Away Youth Centre at 6 p.m. and at Wilson Centre at 5:30 p.m. Both dinners will feature pink desserts. Youth can attend either meal for $2.
Other anti-bullying activities include:
Youth services staff are wearing pink shirts during February and will be joined by other city staff and council members on Feb. 29.
Pink "stop bullying" bracelets are available for $1 at the Hyde Away and Offside youth centres and from the cashier area at Hyde Creek Recreation Centre and the Port Coquitlam Recreation Complex. Proceeds go to help fund bullying awareness programming.
Resource boards are posted at the Hyde Away and Offside youth centres to help young people understand and avoid bullying behaviour and find support.
The webpage at www.portcoquitlam.ca/stopbullying features information about the 2012 events as well as links to help raise awareness and prevent bullying behaviour.
For more information about the Stop Bullying Day events, visit www.pocoyouth.ca or contact Youth Services at 604.927.7981. Information and resources are also posted at www.portcoquitlam.ca/stopbullying.
Anti-bullying resources can also be found at www.pinkshirtday.ca.
