For the past year KCPT has been part of the national anti-hate initiative Not In Our Town. From screenings to student PSAs check out how people are standing up against hate in our community.
Not in Our Town
Bye Bye Bully: Fairfax Learning Center’s Anti-Bullying PSA
Last September, we devoted an entire Local Show episode to bullying and hate. Since then, KCPT has been working behind the scenes with area schools to produce their own anti-bullying messages. This week, we feature the message produced by the Fairfax Learning Center, a high school in Kansas City, Kansas.
Here is a look at another spot that was produced by students at FL Schlagle High School in Kansas City, KS:
Local Students Take a Stand with Anti-Bullying PSAs
“School is a safe spot, not a hate spot” and “Bullying is an act of insecurity #beyourself” are some of the messages from anti-bullying PSAs created by students at two local high schools. As part of the national Public Media initiative Not In Our Town (NIOT), KCPT asked local high school students to create anti-bullying PSAs for use on-air and in area classrooms.
Both PSAs will premiere around the February 13, 2012 broadcast of the latest NIOT documentary, Not In Our Town: Class Actions, which showcases how university and school campuses across the country have found positive ways to stand up against hate and bullying.
Students at FL Schlagle High School in Kansas City, KS decided to focus their PSA on cyber bullying. They polled fellow students to find out how social media is used to bully and then came up with ways to handle it. Throughout the spot, masked students hold signs with hash tagged messages like “Once you tweet it, it’s there forever #thinkbeforeyoutweet.”
Fairfax Learning Center’s student council came up with the slogan “School is a safe spot, not a hate spot,” designed a poster, and scripted a bullying skit. Because Fairfax Learning Center does not have a video production class or equipment, KCPT’s production crew went to film the skit and then edited it together.
The PSAs will continue to air on KCPT for the next year and will also be available to area teachers along with classroom resources from Not In Our Town. Educators are encouraged to sign-up to receive these resources and updates from the initiative here.
Not In Our Town: Come Together to Stop Hate
Not in Our Town: Light in the Darkness tells the story of residents of a Long Island village taking action after a local immigrant is killed in a hate crime attack by seven teenagers. While starkly revealing the trauma of hate, this powerful documentary encourages viewers to take action and prevent intolerance from turning into violence.
You can join a group of fellow concerned citizens in taking a stand against hate in our community. After a screening of Not In Our Town:Light in the Darkness, U.S. Justice Department Region VII Community Relations Directer Pascual Marquez discussed best practices for addressing and preventing hate-crimes in our community. Much of the discussion focused on anti-immigrant and homophobic attitudes in our neighborhoods, schools and in politics. Marquez proposed creating a task force of citizens and organizations that would be resource for preventing, reporting and reconciliation of hate crimes. You or your organization can get involved here.
In conjunction with the national PBS documentary KCPT’s The Local Show highlights communities coming together to stop hate and features several segments showcasing local efforts to combat acts of hate and bullying in our community.
This event was co-sponsored by: Coalition of Hispanic Organizations, PFLAG-KC and The Kansas City Anti-Violence Project.
Interested in hosting a screening for your group or school?
Contact Lindsey Foat
Join the conversation on Twitter #NIOTKC
Not In Our Town: The Revolution Against Hatred
As a companion to the PBS documentary Not In Our Town, The Local Show focuses on efforts in our community to stop hatred. We will speak with former Miss Kansas Alyssa George about her efforts to combat bullying in schools. Anti-Bullying expert and author SuEllen Fried shares an emotional story from one of her school visits. We will feature the story of Walter Currie, Jr., a Poplar Bluff, MO teen who was set on fire in a possible hate crime. We highlight a story from local Holocaust survivor Bronia Roslawowski. Viewers may contact the Midwest Center for Holocaust Education for additional information on the Holocaust including testimonies of other local Holocaust survivors. We get a look inside the Kansas City Anti-Violence Project. We will also share excerpts and reaction from a screening of Not In Our Town.
How can you help prevent bullying?
Learn how to recognize bullying: Educate yourself on how to recognize the signs of bullying and what you can do to prevent kids from being bullied. Learn to tell the difference between bullying and harmless childhood play.
Help educate others: Spread the word by talking to the people in your community who have the power to put an end to bullying. Here are a few groups you may want to visit or call:
Your family: If you have kids, teach them that bullying is wrong. Use the government resources provided for bullied kids and bullied teens to help them come up with a plan for what to do if they experience bullying as a victim or an observer.
Your friends and neighbors: Take a few minutes to share this bullying information with people in your neighborhood. Encourage adults and children to speak up and stop bullying wherever they see it.
Your local schools: StopBullying.gov has a wealth of free anti-bullying material aimed at helping teachers, school administrators, and students recognize and prevent school bullying. Print some of the school bullying articles and give them to your local school district or email officials the link. You may also want to suggest that school children take the Anti-bullying Pledge from Bullying.org.
Stop bullying when you see it: By now, you know what to do. The next time you see an innocent child being victimized by a bully, don’t let the abuse continue. Your actions to stop bullying will help victimized children have hope again and will pave the way for others to stop letting senseless bullying harm young lives.
Resources:
Kansas City Anti-Violence Project
BullySafe USA
Midwest Center for Holocaust Education
Stop Bullying: Speak Up Campaign on Facebook
Synergy Services
StopBullying
The Working Group
Not In Our Town: Light in the Darkness
Tune in Thursday, September 22, 2011 for the documentary Not In Our Town: Light in the Darkness. The film tells the story of the residents in a Long Island community who take action after a local immigrant is killed in a hate crime attack. Their inspiring story provides a blueprint for people who want to do something before intolerance turns to violence.
In conjunction with the national PBS documentary Not In Our Town: Light In the Darkness, KCPT’s THE LOCAL SHOW highlighs communities coming together to stop hate,
Featured segments showcasing local efforts to combat acts of hate and bullying in our community.
• The Walter Currie, Jr. Story – In June of 2009, Walter Currie, Jr., a Poplar Bluff, MO teen was set on fire in a possible hate crime. THE LOCAL SHOW follows up on this story to see what happened in this case, and where Currie and the teen charged with this attack are now.
• SuEllen Fried – Kansas City based bullying expert travels to schools and conferences throughout the country, providing anti-bullying workshops and training. She shares with viewers an emotional and moving story from one of her school visits.
• Holocaust survivor Bronia Roslawowski – The Midwest Center for Holocaust Education (MCHE) shares the video segment of Roslawowski’s oral testimony as part of its “Witnesses to the Holocaust” project.
For additional information on the Holocaust and/or testimonies of other local Holocaust survivors and the MCHE-produced documentary The Holocaust: Through Our Own Eyes go to www.mchekc.org.
• Miss Kansas 2007, Alyssa George, sits down with Nick Haines to speak about her personal experience as a victim of bullying when she was young, and the bullying-prevention presentations she gives to school students throughout the metro region. George, a native of Minneapolis, KS is a graduate of the University of Kansas and is employed with Commerce Bank.
• See excerpts from the Kansas City Anti-Violence Project’s documentary Rise Up, Speak Out: LGBT Youth Overcoming Violence in Kansas City. Teens of diverse sexual orientation and gender identity share their stories of how they have been bullied or discriminated against and the resources they have found to be able to cope with the violence and harassment they have experienced.
Learn more about Not In Our Town.
Not In Our Town: Light in the Darkness
Tune in Thursday, September 22, 2011 for the documentary Not In Our Town: Light in the Darkness. The film tells the story of the residents in a Long Island community who take action after a local immigrant is killed in a hate crime attack. Their inspiring story provides a blueprint for people who want to do something before intolerance turns to violence. A discussion of strategies for hate crime prevention and building safer, more inclusive communities will follow the film.
The screening will be held at Screenland Crown Center
2450 Grand Blvd. 3rd FloorKansas City, MO. 64108
The event is free and open to the public, but RSVP required.
Learn more about Not In Our Town.
Not In Our Town: Light in the Darkness
Join KCPT, The Coalition of Hispanic Organizations and PFLAG-KC on September 13th from 6-8pm for a special sneak peak of the documentary Not In Our Town: Light in the Darkness. The film tells the story of the residents in a Long Island community who take action after a local immigrant is killed in a hate crime attack. Their inspiring story provides a blueprint for people who want to do something before intolerance turns to violence. A discussion of strategies for hate crime prevention and building safer, more inclusive communities will follow the film.
The screening will be held at Screenland Crown Center
2450 Grand Blvd. 3rd FloorKansas City, MO. 64108
The event is free and open to the public, but RSVP required.
Learn more about Not In Our Town.
