Mr. Matthew Ryan:

I will touch briefly on the first point raised by the Senator because I do not want the whole conversation around bullying to become about RSE. It is crucially important we have an unbiased RSE curriculum and an unbiased curriculum in general. As I stated, the current RSE curriculum is based around the stereotypical, heteronormative white couple and that is simply not reflective of what students are. If students cannot see themselves in a curriculum, they will not engage with it. If they see people who are nothing like them, they will not engage with that because it is not them.

On the point in respect of bystanders, I point out how important it is to start with the grassroots and the small changes we can make. In a group of six people, for example, there may be one person who could be considered a bully, while the other five may be complete bystanders who have never engaged and would never engage in bullying. However, when their friend decides to bully another person, it is very difficult for them to stand up against their friend for fear of retaliation or being seen as lesser by that person. It is very important to acknowledge in the context of the bystander and standing up that it is very difficult because bullying often happens purposefully out of sight, such as when a person walks into a bathroom and tries to get to the stalls but is slammed on the way in or comments are made or anti-Semitic comments are written on the walls of the bathroom. It is very difficult to escape it but it is also very difficult to ask teachers to intervene if that is happening in bathrooms and such places. That is why it comes back down to education and working on the smaller level to stop it at the grassroots.