#PinkShirtPromise, a national campaign launched Tuesday, hopes to inspire Canadians to share their personal pledges on social media, in an effort to help end bullying.
The project also asks people to post a photo of their pinky or a photo of themselves making a pinky promise with a friend or family member using #PinkyPromise. The next step is to nominate three friends to do the same, in an effort to “promote accountability and maintain commitment to the promise.”
“Pink Shirt Promise is…built on people making personal promises and commitments, to their friends, to their families and to their communities about how they’re going to end bullying on some kind of way,” Shaw Communications vice president of external affairs Chethan Lakshman said. Shaw Communications is one of seven organizations behind the campaign.
“It could be as simple as saying, ‘I’m going to treat people more fairly’ or ‘I’m going to treat people the way they are’ or ‘I’m going to become a better person’ or something even more specific than that. But it’s a campaign designed to bring conversation and enthusiasm around social media, whether it’s Twitter, Instagram or Facebook, and bring attention to the problem of bullying in our community.”
Partners involved in the campaign include Youthlink Calgary, Canadian Centre for Child Protection, Kids Help Phone, MediaSmarts, Companies Committed to Kids, and Rock Solid Foundation.
“Our research shows that three-quarters of Canadian students say it’s important to speak out against bullying, racism and sexism online,” MediaSmarts co-executive director Cathy Wing said in a statement. “Unfortunately, almost half of them don’t feel that it’s their place to do so, and older kids are more likely than younger ones to feel this way.”
The campaign starts Tuesday on Safer Internet Day, and continues until Pink Shirt Day on Feb. 24. For more information, click here.
READ MORE: Safer Internet Day – How parents can help kids stay safe online
Everyone who takes part in the campaign will be entered for a chance to win an ET Canada Experience: flights for two to Toronto and two nights in a hotel, along with a $1,500 shopping spree.
Shaw is opening up its Shaw Go WiFi Guest Network to let people more easily post their #PinkShirtPromise on Pink Shirt Day. Shaw Internet subscribers already have access to the Shaw Go WiFi service; others can access the Guest Network by searching for available WiFi connections and choosing “ShawGuest” from the list of available options. A full list of locations is available at http://www.shaw.ca/wifi or by downloading the Shaw Go WiFi Finder app.
Shaw Communications is the parent company of Shaw Media, which owns Global News.
READ MORE: Fighting bullying on Pink Shirt Day 2015
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