A real attention getter

This is the kind of story I call a grabber. It grabs my thoughts and tenaciously preoccupies my mind refusing to let go. In it are all the juicy elements we like, rebellion against abusive authorities and justice for the oppressed, as well as the ingredients required to make a story American, wholesomeness and victory.

It is about doing what is right and moral, even against the odds but, in the end, the underdog wins.

My wife, Sue, and I were vacationing in Nova Scotia back in the early fall when in their local newspaper, The Halifax Chronicle Herald, I happened across a most interesting article concerning the “pink shirt movement.” Never heard of it? Not only do I hope that you will soon, but I encourage you to also stand up and be counted.

It seems that in the little community of Cambridge, Nova Scotia (population 763), two seniors in the Central Kings Rural High School, David Shepherd and Travis Price, witnessed a bully picking on another student.

Anyone who has been through a public school system knows that bullying is a universal experience and is not confined by language, national boundaries, culture or class. The victim’s description, too, was fairly universal — skinny, underweight and sporting braces, except on that particular day he had one more attribute that, at least in the limited minds of the would-be thugs, excused them to torment him with derisive comments — he was wearing a pink shirt.

In their ethically underdeveloped minds, that was equivalent to being a sissy.

David and Travis countered the bullying by a means so simple and yet so blatant, it had to be effective. All they did was convince as many of their friends as they could to also start wearing pink shirts. Soon pink clothing was the “in” thing to wear —- pink T-shirts, tank tops, you name it.

In the face of such numbers (somewhat like Custer at Little Big Horn), the ruffians, wisely, backed down and away. The story made other papers before long as well and soon found its way to the Internet.

From the small community of Cambridge, Nova Scotia, people from as far away as Australia and Europe have numbered among the hundreds of thousands logging on to offer support — and it is not just students.

Politicians, educators and social activists in general are among the Johnny-come-lately’s trying to grab a bit of the credit begun by two teenagers who were simply doing what they knew to be the right thing to do.

Bullying is more than a simple inconvenient distraction to educators attempting to teach in an already difficult academic environment each day. People who have an immature desire to be authoritarian or controlling do not end their malicious behavior upon graduation from school.

Their harassing ridicule and satirical antics continue to dominate their conduct and relationships in the future areas of life be it in the workforce, civic clubs and even, yes, church.

We all encounter abusive behaviors in our lives. Sometimes we may be the victims, but more frequently we are the witnesses standing off doing nothing to counter the injustices of inhumanity.

In truth, bullying, racism, taking advantage of others and just general meanness are the behaviors of cowards and ignoramuses. In our hearts, most of us know that. In their hearts such mischief-makers also know this truth about their undesirable natures, but they keep their weakness a secret.

But there is another truth that is not quite so obvious, and thanks to David and Travis it is now out in the open — that it is within our means for good to win over these evils.

All that is required is for those who are disgusted with bad people is to stand up and speak out from their hearts and minds — and, by the way, is not that supposed to be the American way?

Johnny A. Phillips is the Clinical Chaplain of the J. Iverson Riddle Developmental Center.

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