YWCA YMCA Switzerland Engages in Prevention of Violence
On International Children’s Day, November 20, the YWCA YMCA of Switzerland led a conference on bullying among youths in schools and youth activities. 130 leaders from various youth movements and sports associations came to together under the conference theme “Hey, you got a problem?” to discuss the phenomenon of bullying – why it happens, what are the patterns of bullying, what effects does it have on the victim, and how can it be prevented.
Urs Urech, a youth worker and peace coach, opened the conference with a lecture on bullying. He described the different types of bullies that exist, saying that “typically there is one, or several, bullies who take it out on one member of the group, while the bullied person does nothing to protect himself as he would like to please the bully. At the same time, there is a group of witnesses, who out of neglect or out of fear do not intervene. For a situation like this to be stopped, it takes either a group leader or witnesses in the group that step in.”
The discussions that followed demonstrated the devastating effects that bullying can have on the victim. Bullying inevitably leads to low self-esteem, and in more serious cases it can result in thoughts, or even attempts, at suicide. Therefore, the role of the youth leader is very important as they must help the victim to re-build their self-esteem without taking them out of the group, as this could further reinforce that the situation is the victim’s fault. The youth leader must also talk to the bully and make him/her aware that their actions are wrong and can have serious effects on the person that they are bullying.
During the afternoon the participants broke into small discussion groups. Each group had an expert on the theme present, but the goal was to involve the participants and encourage them to share their experience and expertise on the topic. By the end of the conference it became clear to all participants that bullying can happen anywhere, including in a Christian Youth Movement. However, positive messages of hope were also exchanged, and the participants agreed that bullying can be avoided through dialogue, open communication, and the creation of safe spaces.
