Pink Shirt Day sees support at Edmonton schools, City Hall

Hundreds if not thousands of Edmontonians stood up for inclusivity and kindness – and against bullying – on Wednesday for the 17th annual Pink Shirt Day.

Most of Edmonton's councillors turned up to a meeting at City Hall in the morning wearing pink. Coun. Erin Rutherford opened the meeting by recalling the origin of the national day of action.

Pink Shirt Day was started in 2007 by a pair of Nova Scotia students who distributed pink shirts after a peer was bullied for wearing a pink shirt.

It’s #PinkShirtDay! Together let’s build stronger communities by embracing our diversity and letting it be know that bullying in any form is not acceptable.

Regardless of ability, culture, religion, race, age, ethnicity, or gender diversity - everyone is welcome here in #yeg pic.twitter.com/NEZawy31KY

— Erin Rutherford (@Erinforanirniq) February 22, 2023

"Pink Shirt Day has become an international movement for change. It is a clear example of how a small action can make a big impact. I hope this inspires everyone to do small but courageous actions to make a big difference in the lives of others," she told her colleagues.

This year, the campaign's slogan is "Be Kind and Lift Each Other Up."

Esther Starkman kindergarten teacher Christel Hennig said since the start of the school year, the school in Terwillegar has engaged its community on the topics of diversity, inclusion and equity in education.

"In a society where there's lots of things going on in the outside world, we have control over this in the school and in the classroom and we can help the kids feel engaged with each other," Hennig said.

The school's Grade 3 class was joined by Who's Hockey author Jeff McLean, who partnered with the NHL on the children's book about the league's Declaration of Principles. Who's Hockey is about acceptance, one of the seven principles.

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He read the story – featuring details inspired by his own life and favourite NHL players – for the class.

"Perfect timing, today being Pink Shirt Day and about lifting each other up," McLean told CTV News Edmonton.

Grade 3 student Jayden Walters said the book's lesson was, "We should include other people and always be kind."

His peer Katrina Romanyk said she learned, "No matter what gender you are, you can do anything."

And classmate Benjamin Klawitter called Who's Hockey one of his new favourite books.

"I think it's an important message because everyone can play whatever sport they want and they can be who they are."

McLean hopes to also turn the NHL's other six principles into books to create a series. He was part of the team behind the creation of the NHL's pride tape, debuted by the Edmonton Oilers in 2016. The tape appears on the Who's Hockey cover.

F.R. Haythorne Junior High in Sherwood Park had a different, more colourful approach for Pink Shirt Day.

"First thing today, they started in class and they were able to write a positive message about what kindness meant to them on a pink sticky, then we collected them all and put them up down this hallway," said Jessica Smith, the school's principal.

Students at F.R. Haythorne in Sherwood Park wrote notes with kind messages for Pink Shirt Day. (CTV News Edmonton)

A constable also visited classes and taught students about the consequences of online harassment and bullying."

"I think we should all just be kind every single day, not just one day," Grade 9 student McKenna Andree said.

BULLYING IS EVERYWHERE: YWCA

According to YWCA Edmonton's CEO, Katherine O’Neill, about one in three adolescents report being bullied and nearly half of Canadian parents say their kids have been bullied.

"You find it in schoolyards. You find it in workplaces. You find it everywhere. It is very prevalent in our community. And those are just the stats we do know," she said during a CTV Edmonton Morning Live interview on Wednesday, pointing out bullying often goes unreported because of stigma.

She said bullying can result in substance abuse, depression, anxiety, suicide and partner violence.

The YWCA offers programming, such as GirlSpace, teaching youth about healthy relationships and confidence.

"[Bullying] is preventable. It is learned behaviour. You don't have to accept it," O'Neill said.

The Alberta government offers bully support through a 24-hour helpline at 1-888-456-2323 and online chat.

With files from CTV Edmonton's Marek Tkach