Cyberbullies should be reported, Cape Breton students told

Grade 6 students who are part of Sydney's Youth Speaks Up program got some important advice about cyberbullying over the weekend from the local police force's top brass.

Cape Breton Regional Police Chief Peter McIsaac spoke to the group about the dangers of the internet and how to protect themselves against cyberbullying.

"They're on the cusp of adolescence and they're going into junior high where they're exposed to a lot more things," said McIsaac.

"They're going to go into adolescence. That goes into other territories that makes cyber surfing and information sharing a lot more risky. So we think it's a good age."

McIsaac drove home the point that bullies online can often be caught, but only if the person receiving the message tells someone and it gets passed on the police.

"It's a lot easier to be anonymous with technology — to bully someone without them knowing who it's coming from," McIsaac told the group.

He said harassing and libellous posts are illegal and can cause emotional damage, and even lead others to suicide.

McIsaac told the children to refrain from making nasty comments about others online or they could themselves get into trouble.

Brooklyn Campbell, one of the students at the meeting, said she knows about cyberbullying but the chief really opened her eyes.

"How big the issue really, really is. It truly is such a big problem," she said.

Zach Martine said one of his classmates had a bad experience online.

"My friend at school, she got bullied right before Halloween and they were kind of threatening her to do stuff that she didn't want to do," he said.

McIsaac also brought up the issue of sexting and that young people posting intimate pictures online are committing a crime.

He said he hopes talking frankly to kids in Grade 6 about both subjects will curb similar behaviour in them before they become teenagers.

Youth Speaks Up was created here in Cape Breton. It's the brainchild of Cape Breton businessman Jack Yazer. Each session features a different guest speaker specializing in a variety of topics facing youth.