Angie Mindus
Staff Writer
A Williams Lake teen has been given the honour of becoming one of only 12 students in the province selected to Christy Clark’s new ERASE Bullying strategy team.
Lake City Secondary School Grade 11 student Donavan Shaw said he was shocked when he heard the good news.
“I was speechless, then really excited,” Shaw said Monday. “I thought, wow, I really get a shot at this, I can make a difference.”
Mike Levitt, district transitions counsellor at School District 27, wrote a reference letter for Shaw, who he has worked with, teaching Grade 7s strategies to cope with bullying for the past year.
“He will be a great ambassador for our school –– he is a good communicator, a good listener and a very confident speaker,” said Levitt.
“But more important than that, he is passionate about wanting change.”
Intelligent and well-spoken, Shaw does well in school and says he’s very happy with his life today, but it hasn’t always been that way.
He is one of only a handful of openly gay students in the local school district and is currently president of the Gay Straight Alliance at LCSS.
“I felt really isolated and alone, and I felt really guilty and bad about myself,” Shaw recalls of the years leading up to when he finally admitted to himself, and then others, that he was gay.
“It was tough with my parents. I came out to my peers way before my parents, but they’re more accepting now,” Shaw said.
“As soon as I came out it was such a relief –– it bears a weight you don’t realize until its gone.”
Shaw feels strongly it’s his responsibility to share his knowledge and experience with others, to teach students, and adults for that matter, that acceptance is the key to a better life for everyone.
He said being selected to the ERASE Bullying team will help him achieve that goal.
“It allows me to take my role to a greater level. I can help so many other people now.”
Shaw said he hasn’t received all the instructions from the ministry yet, however, according to previous government news releases on the anti-bullying team, the students are expected to provide advice and insight directly to Premier Christy Clark and Education Minister Peter Fassbender on the provincial bullying strategy.
The students also will act as ambassadors of change for their regional schools and districts to ensure safe learning environments and gather the views of students and act as representatives in their role as liaisons to the government.
As part of Pink Shirt Day today (Feb. 26), Shaw is scheduled to give a talk at his school as president of the Gay Straight Alliance about the group and on how derogatory statements, such as “that’s so gay,” perpetuate bullying.
Shaw said sadly there are only seven members in the alliance due to fears of being bullied or worse, but that in fact one out of every 10 people is homosexual according to statistics.
He said if he can let students know how much name calling hurts, then maybe it’ll help.
However, Shaw is also not oblivious to the suppression of human rights globally, where laws against being gay in Africa and, more notably, Russia, exist today.
“It’s so sad and depressing when we go backwards,” Shaw said.
“It’s just another giant wall in the marathon you’re running and you have to either go around it or break it down.”
In regards to why he feels so passionately about living his life out of the closet, Shaw said the sense of freedom to be yourself is something everyone has a right to feel.
He also blames the current rate of teenage depression and suicide with pressures to conform to society norms, and brushes off concerns that he could be the target of violence by choosing to live openly gay.
“I’ve come to the conclusion that if it does happen, maybe it’ll be worth it. I’ve been given this knowledge and I feel like to have to give it back.”
According to the government, ERASE Student Advisory’s first task will be to develop social media guidelines for school districts.
These will provide direction for students, parents and educators on how to use social media ethically and responsibly. Two adult subject-matter experts will be available to support the students in developing the guidelines.
In June 2012, Premier Christy Clark created ERASE Bullying (Expect Respect And a Safe Education) to help prevent, identify and stop harmful behaviours by children and adults — whether online, at school or in the community following.
Clark launched the program following several high profile incidents of teen suicides as a result of bullying.
The pledge from the government is that every child deserves an education free from discrimination, bullying, harassment, intimidation and violence.