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www.insideHALTON.com · OAKVILLE BEAVER Wednesday, September 12, 2012 · 6 Opinion & Letters The Oakville Beaver 467 Speers Rd., Oakville Ont. L6K 3S4 905-845-3824 Fax: 337-5566 Classified Advertising: 632-4440 Circulation: 905-631-6095 -- 5300 Harvester Rd., Burlington Editorial and advertising content of the Oakville Beaver is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited. THE OAKVILLE BEAVER IS PROUD OFFICIAL MEDIA SPONSOR FOR: Canadian Circulation Audit Board Member THE OAKVILLE BEAVER IS PROUD OFFICIAL MEDIA SPONSOR FOR: Recognized for Excellence by Ontario Community Newspapers Association Suburban Newspapers of America Canadian Community Newspapers Association ATHENA Award Neil Oliver Vice ­ President and Group Publisher of Metroland West The OakvilleBeaver is a division of David Harvey Regional General Manager JILL DAVIS Editor in Chief Daniel Baird Advertising Director ANGELA BLACKBURN Managing Editor Riziero Vertolli Photography Director Sandy Pare Business Manager MARK DILLS Director of Production Manuel garcia Production Manager CHARLENE HALL Director of Distribution KIM MOSSMAN Circulation Manager Preventing suicide Monday (Sept. 10) marked the 10th anniversary of World Suicide Prevention Day, a day when people are encouraged to discuss solutions to what is a prevalent mental health issue among our young people. According to Children's Mental Health Ontario (CMHO), suicide is the second leading cause of death among 10-24 year olds in Canada. Untreated mental illness -- depression, in particular -- is the leading risk factor for suicide. For every suicide completion, there are thousands more young people having thoughts of suicide and attempting suicide, according to the CMHO. One recent study found one in 10 students in Grades 7-12 reported they had seriously considered suicide, and about three per cent reported attempting suicide. Among Aboriginal youths, suicide is estimated to occur at rates five times higher than non-Aboriginal youths. In keeping with the theme of this year's World Suicide Prevention Day in Ontario, "All Together ­ Promoting Hope and Resiliency," the CMHO joined with the Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention to encourage communities across the province to get involved by showing their support for people affected by suicide and promote a collaborative approach to suicide prevention. While support can be expressed many ways, the gift of non-judgmental support is of utmost importance. Shame is one of the most challenging and prominent feelings around suicide. The stigma associated with suicide often prevents those suffering from getting help. "We need to be open and we need to be educated," said Gordon Floyd, president and CEO of CMHO. "Let's remove the stigma associated with suicide and start talking about it. " One-in-five children and youths has a mental health issue severe enough to seriously affect their daily functioning at home, school or within the community. Early intervention remains critical to young people having the best possible chance at succeeding in all aspects of their life. For an extensive list of Halton organizations that provide support and help to individuals experiencing mental health issues, crises, loneliness and emotional stress, see the first installment of our series on suicide on the front page and page 11 of today's newspaper. The Oakville Beaver is a member of the Ontario Press Council. The council is located at 80 Gould St., Suite 206, Toronto, Ont., M5B 2M7. Phone 416-340-1981. Advertising is accepted on the condition that, in the event of a typographical error, that portion of advertising space occupied by the erroneous item, together with a reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charged for, but the balance of the advertisement will be paid for at the applicable rate. The publisher reserves the right to categorize advertisements or decline. Letters to the editor The Oakville Beaver welcomes letters from its readers. Letters will be edited for clarity, length, legal considerations and grammar. In order to be published all letters must contain the name, address and phone number of the author. Letters should be addressed to The Editor, Oakville Beaver, 467 Speers Rd., Oakville, ON, L6K 3S4, or via e-mail to editor@oakvillebeaver.com. The Beaver reserves the right to refuse to publish a letter. Re: Houseplant needs new home, Wednesday, Sept. 5, 2012, The Oakville Beaver I read the letter regarding the Benjamina tree that is growing too fast -- the Letter to the Editor dated Sept. 5, 2012. I do have a Benjamina tree, in fact for about 30 years now, and it has survived three moves to different homes. Yes, it does get big, but I occasionally trim it and shape it. If the person does not want to give it away, or hasn't found a home for it, my suggestion is to trim it to size. These trees are hardy enough, and it will survive. Carmen Muscat, Oakville Reader gives tips on how to maintain a Benjamina tree Letter to the editor Recently, I saw an excellent Dateline episode on bullying. It appears that bullying in U.S. schools is widespread, with painful consequences to students -- fear, humiliation, depression, even death. As a sociologist, I found the show very interesting for it examined and demonstrated the role that bystanders play in the continuation of bullying. Each bullying simulation involved a group of students. Two teenagers, unknown to the others, played the roles of bullies, and picked on a particular victim mercilessly. In one scenario, the victim was a boy who was pilloried for being "gay," whatever teens mean by that adjective. He was handsome and slight of build. The role of bystanders in bullying Interestingly, unknown to the others, this boy was actually gay, had openly declared his sexuality, recently before the social experiment, and had endured the same treatment in school that he was subjected to in the experiment. In another scenario, the victim was an overweight female teen whose physical size and choice of clothing style elicited bullying from her female peers. In both scenarios, parents observed their children's behaviour behind a one-way mirror. At the end of each simulation, the students were asked how they felt about the bullying they had seen. Their responses supported the hypothesis that bystanders reinforce bullying either verbally or through an implicit approval shown by their silence, and this was explained to them. Many parents were disappointed at how their children had behaved despite the moral values they tried to pass on. The eminently sound advice given was never to allow one's power to pass to the bully by submitting to the demands made. Rather, students should stand up to bullies either with a dignified silence, a verbal statement that the bullying was wrong, or by walking away. The moral values transmitted by parents, especially passivity in the face of aggression, are ineffective where students are regularly bullied, and simply subject many students to an unending cycle of humiliation and depression. Some school administrators seem unaware of this. Many schools engage in an unfair response to school fights where there is clear evidence that X was the aggressor. They usually suspend both the victim (who put up a defence of his/her person) and the aggressor (who committed the crime of assault). This inevitably alienates the victim. Perhaps the Columbine massacre had its roots in a similar school administration response. This applied social psychological experiment is now on You Tube, by searching "NBC Dateline -- My kids would never bully." All parents should view it. Kenneth Aquan-Asse, Oakville