In a unanimous vote the Canadian Teachers' Federation endorsed a new policy today that calls on the federal government to amend the Criminal Code to include cyberbullying. “We feel that there's not enough teeth in the Criminal Code right now for cyberbullying,” president Emily Noble said. According to the group both students and teachers are being harassed through e-mail, instant messenger, chat rooms, blogs and social networking sites. The document prepared by the teachers group says “using information and communication technology to convey a message which threatens death or bodily harm or perpetuates fear and intimidation in another constitutes a punishable offence under the Code.” With any luck the federal government will see the gravity of the situation and act quickly to support the educators who are on the front line.
