POLICE ASSOCIATION OF NOVA SCOTIA 51 Lois Fralic’s hands shook and her voice broke as she stood before more than 100 people and spoke about the last days of her son Emmett’s life. Emmett, 14, committed suicide after he was subjected to months of bullying. A group of teenagers demanded he pay them $40 a day. If the Halifax teen couldn't come up with the money, he was forced to stand in a circle of his tormenters and choose which one would punish him. The punishments were cruel, his mother tearfully told the group gathered at North Nova Education Centre Wednesday night. Emmett was punched, kicked, burned with cigarettes and even forced to eat dog feces. He would come home with bruises, but he hid them from his parents or lied about their origins. He was caught shoplifting twice, the stolen goods sold to pay off the bullies. At the time of his death, all he had was a few articles of clothing. His stereo, CDs, bicycle and several items from the Fralic home were all sold to fend off the bullies for another day. It wasn’t until he committed suicide that his parents even found out he was being bullied, Fralic said. Emmett’s friends knew the horrors he was facing on a daily basis, and even kicked in some money to help him, but they never said a word. Perhaps, his mother speculated, they feared they would be bullied next. It all ended for Emmett when he committed suicide in the early hours of April 8, 2001. But his family is left to spread the message that no one has the right to mentally or physically abuse another person. “I believe everyone has a purpose in life,” Fralic said. “And Emmett’s purpose was to open our eyes to bullying. So let’s not waste his purpose by pretending that bullying doesn’t exist or it’s not important. Let’s come up with a solution to the problem.” It’s to help children and teenagers like Emmett that the five law enforcement agencies in Pictou County, along with several corporate partners, have banded together to launch a new bullying prevention program and public awareness campaign. “When we started working on this program, I started to ask a number of individuals if they’d been teased or abused in school by any type of bullying,” said Const. Howie Dunbar of the Westville Police Department. “Most people responded with a yes. I was talking to a 71-year old gentleman, and he still knew the name of the young fellow who bullied him back in Grade 3.” The tag line “bullying - just because you don’t see it, doesn’t mean it’s not going on” is aimed at reminding everyone that bullying can come in many forms - physical, verbal and relational. Verbal taunts or gossip, by both girls and boys, can hurt just as much as a fist, added Const. Ken MacDonald of the New Glasgow Police Services. He hopes that the program will make children understand that bullying in any form is unacceptable. Police officers from all the agencies involved will begin going into the schools and making presentations on what bullying is and how to stop it over the coming weeks. A hotline, courtesy of Aliant, came online Wednesday as well. Anyone who is being bullied or knows of someone else being bullied can call 310-TALK. The phone line will be accessible 24 hours a day, seven days a week, or a voice mail system will be available to anyone who wishes to remain anonymous. The calls will be dealt with by the respective agencies and the actions taken will be reflective of the nature of the calls received, whether it warrants notifying school officials to keep their eyes open or involving the police. jvardy@ngnews.ca As originally published March 4, 2004 NEW CAMPAIGN AIMS TO STOP BULLYING By Jennifer Vardy- The Evening News Jennifer Vardy The Evening News A new bullying prevention public awareness campaign was launched in Pictou County Wednesday night. The project, which is a joint program among the five law enforcement agencies in the county, will feature posters, bumper stickers and a bullying hotline. Constable Ken MacDonald, left, community policing officer with New Glasgow Police Services, was the first to put one of the new bumper stickers on his patrol car, with the help of Don MacKay, regional manager of Aliant.
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