Pink might not be your colour on the other 364 days of the year, but today is different.Today is Pink Shirt Day.Wearing a pink shirt or anything pink today signifies that you are standing with anybody and everybody who is oppressed by a bully.Essentially intimidation, bullying can happen in schools, in workplaces and online. It can happen to men, women and children.Bullies gain power and confidence from exploiting weakness in others. Bullies are typically cowards who try to stack the odds in their favour, physically and/or emotionally.One way to counteract this is strength in numbers, which is why Boys and Girls Clubs and London Drugs are selling pink anti-bullying shirts to show solidarity for the bullied.From the Boys and Girls Club of Canada website (www.bgccan.com), here’s some practical advice.How can parents tell their children are being bullied?• Feelings of rejection;• Low self-esteem;• Poor grades at school;• Isolation, withdrawal from group activities at school and outside school;• Aggressiveness, nervousness, extreme sensitivity;• Fear or refusal to go to school.What should children do? • Do not answer back with verbal violence. • Ignore the insults by walking with your head high. • If you witness bullying towards another student, it is best to immediately refer what you have seen to an adult.What should parents do? • Discuss the problem with your child and try to obtain the name of the bully. • Discuss the problem with the teacher and the principal of the school. • Advise the child, but try not to do everything in his or her place. • Guide the child toward out-of-school activities. • Do not encourage verbal or physical violence as a suitable means of defence. • Do not trivialize the problem. Take it seriously.For more information about bullying, visit www.bullyingawarenessnetwork.ca and www.cipb.ca.Even if you don’t wear a pink shirt, follow this sensible advice and make it difficult for bullies to thrive.editor@comoxvalleyrecord.com