Bullying and Cyberbullying

Bullying in schools is a serious concern that can lead to school violence. Whether you're the victim or a bystander, bullying should be reported immediately. 

Cyberbullying is when a child, preteen or teen is tormented, threatened, harassed, humiliated, embarrassed, or otherwise targeted by another child, preteen or teen using the Internet, interactive and digital technologies or mobile phones. Cyberbullying involves minors, once adults become involved, it is cyber-harassment or cyberstalking.

If you're aware of bullying, don’t be afraid to tell someone. By speaking up, you are respecting and caring for your fellow students and taking pride and ownership of your school.

You can anonymously report bullying to teachers, principals, and police or through Calgary Crime Stoppers – a completely anonymous and effective way to report crime, or your school may have its own anonymous tip line.

If you're being bullied, contact your School Resource Officer (SRO). They will:

• Provide advice to reduce the offender’s ability to target you. Do not be drawn into online conversations in which violence and intimidation are used.
• Advise you to block or drop cyberbullies from your service and report abuse to the service provider.
• Assist in determining who is responsible for bullying and deal with them appropriately.
• They may involve you in the solution and suggest you be present in a mediation meeting with the offender or offenders. This will be your choice and will depend on your comfort level.
• In cases where threats to your safety, home, family members, or pets are concerned, your SRO may launch a criminal investigation and charges may result.

If you don't have an SRO, report bullying to a parent or your school administration.

You are not alone. If you're being bullied, the Kids Help Phone is a free counselling resource available 24/7.

Calgary Connecteen: a confidential peer support service for youth in Calgary and area offered by the Distress Centre.

Government of Alberta: find supports, stay safe or help others who are experiencing bullying in person or online.

• Canadian Red Cross bullying and harassment prevention: a resource site providing educational programming and information on bullying, cyberbullying and harassment.
• PREVNet: Canada’s healthy relationships hub: preventing interpersonal violence through research and practice. This site provides resources gathered by 130 different researchers, representing 30 different academic institutions across Canada.
• Alberta Government bullying prevention resource site: dedicated to identifying, preventing and responding to bullying.
• Calgary Board of Education – bullying prevention
• FrancoSud – mental health belonging project: a program designed by Alberta Education and Alberta Health Services focused on mental health promotion and prevention activities.

Some forms of online bullying are considered criminal acts. Under the Criminal Code of Canada, it’s a crime to communicate repeatedly with someone if your communication causes them to fear for their own safety or the safety of others. It's also a crime to publish a "defamatory libel" - writing something that is designed to insult a person or is likely to injure a person's reputation by exposing him or her to hatred, contempt, or ridicule.

A cyberbully may also be violating the Canadian Human Rights Act if he or she[AS1]  spreads hate or discrimination based on race, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, family status or disability.

Call 9-1-1 for any crimes in progress or urgent circumstances.

If you or your child has been the victim of an online crime, please call the Calgary Police Service non-emergency number at 403-266-1234 to report the crime.

Online sexual exploitation of children must be immediately reported the Calgary Police Service. Call 9-1-1 for any crimes in progress or life exigent circumstances or 403-266-1234 for the Calgary Police Service non-emergency line. You may also report crimes anonymously to the Canadian Centre for Child Protection or Calgary Crime Stoppers.

• Kids Help Phone: every day, Kids Help Phone and Parent Help Line counsellors answer calls from across Canada. No matter the problem or concern, counsellors are available to provide support, information and referrals to a local community or social service agency.
• Calgary Connecteen: is a confidential peer support service for youth in Calgary and area provided by the Distress Centre.

• MediaSmarts: a Canadian not-for-profit organization promoting digital and media literacy.
• BeWebAware: a national, bilingual, public education program on Internet safety developed and supported by MediaSmarts, Bell and Microsoft Canada.
• Cybertip.ca: a resource site that aims to protect children from online sexual exploitation. 
• PREVNet: Canada’s healthy relationships hub: preventing interpersonal violence through research and practice. This site provides resources gathered by 130 different researchers, representing 30 different academic institutions across Canada.

• Media Awareness Network videos