Public hearings on the NDP government’s controversial Bill 18 have been occurring at the Manitoba Legislature over the past week. The legislation, which is supposed to be an anti-bullying bill, has caused more than 300 people to come to the Legislature with their opinions about the bill. Many others have provided written submissions. The vast majority of the oral presentations and written presentations have been opposed to Bill 18.
The presentations have been overwhelmingly respectful and powerful. Manitobans who are making public presentations have clearly put a great deal of time and thought into their submissions. It has been one of the most emotional hearings that I have seen at the Legislature.
A great many of the presenters have been telling their own personal stories. Some are youth who have recently been bullied in school. Others are adults who experienced bullying during their time in school. Overwhelmingly, these presenters have been speaking against Bill 18.
That may seem both shocking and counterintuitive. One would expect that the greatest advocates for an anti-bullying bill would be those who are or who have experienced bullying. After all, those are the individuals who should most benefit from or see the need for an effective anti-bullying bill. Yet that has not been the case with Bill 18 because most of the presenters do not see it as an effective anti-bullying bill.
The most common response among those who have experienced being bullied for reasons of body image, ethnicity, language, dress, academic performance or other reasons is that Bill 18 doesn’t include measures that would have protected them from bullying. Many of the presenters have suggested that Bill 18 actually provides false hope to the vast majority of youth being bullied in school today because it provides specific measures for bullying because of sexual orientation but not for most other factors.
There have been a number of things that presenters suggest should be included in Bill 18 to make it an effective anti-bullying law. These include; a clearer definition of bullying, some direction on what the consequences for bullying are, more inclusive protection for those bullied for reasons other than sexual orientation which is already included in Bill 18, greater parental notification and dialogue on the issue of bullying and stronger judicial measures for the most pervasive and serious forums of bullying.
These and other suggestions by presenters would help to make the legislation stronger. Currently, it is one of the weakest anti-bullying bills in North America.
There have also been a number of presentations from independent schools who feel that Bill 18 strikes at their independence and oversimplifies a complex problem. They have brought forward their own ideas on how to deal with bullying overall and have a track record of safety in their schools to back up their suggestions.
Overall the Bill 18 hearings have been respectful and powerful. Manitobans have put a great deal of thought into their presentations. My hope is that the NDP put as much thought into how to improve this bill as Manitobans have.
