Bullying is not a new phenomenon and is not restricted to children and teens. That being said, the perception of bullying and the lasting results to victims have been brought back into the public focus as a result of escalating harassment and violence in our schools across the Country.

The logical assumption that adult bullies can be grown from childhood bullies leads us to increase our preventative education of our youth about bullying, criminality and the morality behind interpersonal relationships, interaction and conflict resolution.

While bullying is a generic term that is being applied to aggressive, antisocial and mean-sprited behaviour among our youth, it is often mis-applied to acts that are now and always have been criminal in nature.

Ontario schools and the Safe Schools Act have taken a tough new stance on many behavioural issues which can range from suspension to all-out expulsion.

Our youth need to know the limits of free-speech, self expression and creative licence and understand that while they are free to their opinions, they will be held accountable and liable for how they express them in our society, especially when they target another person or identifiable group.

Accurately defined, bullying cannot be applied to any act where someone else is threatened, intimidated, assaulted, deprived of their property or access to that property, defamed or have their character brought into disrepute (regardless of whether the allegations are true or untrue), repeatedly harassed either physically or by verbal, printed or electronic communications and several other criteria. All these acts are elements of several criminal offences and always have been.

Cyberbullying is simply the extension of physical bullying, where the internet or some other electronic means is used in place of physical interaction. This can include, but is not limited to, cellphones, chatrooms, simple message service (SMS), instant messaging (IM), e-mail, websites, blogs, newsgroups and forums.

If a person's actions can be described in any of these ways, they are not being a bully. They are being a criminal.

This kind of behaviour has always been wrong and could result in a criminal record for the offender. We also remind our youth that their criminal convictions don't just vanish when they turn 18 and can easily haunt them for the rest of their lives and into their careers. These are the messages that we need to get across to our future adults.

Midland Police Service has several age-appropriate presentations that we use when talking with groups of our youth in schools. If you are interested in learning more about this, feel free to contact us or read the many resources on the web.

Victims and people who know others who are being victimized can do one simple step to stop the cycle of violence and persecution. They need to tell someone about it. This someone needs to listen and take quick decisive action, which includes notifying the school (if the incident is related to the school) and the local police. Online resources can help too. Many resources exist online including the Kids Help Phone organization whose website is www.kidshelpphone.ca

Victims who try to cope on their own often fall into depression, withdrawl and can even become suicidal. The problem will not simply go away on its own.

Click here to view some short videos about cyberbullying.