Together, We Will Stop the Bullying

Jerry Halberstadt Sat, 10/07/2017 - 19:20

Victims of bullying ask, "Does anyone, anywhere care?" We do care. We are the Massachusetts Commission on Bullying, and I am one of the Commissioners as well as Coordinator of the Stop Bullying Coalition. Beacon Hill legislators do care and they gave us the responsibility not only to care, but to find ways to protect you from harm. We will find ways to protect elderly and disabled residents from harm and to protect their rights. Now we are reaching out to you to learn what causes bullying and what can prevent bullying and create healthy communities.

If you are elderly or living with disability and you live in subsidized or public housing, we want to hear from you. You have the protected right to take our survey, "Bullying of Tenants in Public and Subsidized Multi-Family Housing."

If you are a professional or volunteer who provides services to elderly and disabled residents, we ask for your help in distributing this survey. This confidential survey is intended for everyone who lives or works on the premises of public or subsidized multifamily housing for elderly and disabled persons in Massachusetts. What you tell us in this survey will be used in the report of the Commission to your legislators on Beacon Hill and can result in new remedies and protections.

This survey will close on October 27, 2017.

Outreach

In order to assure the broadest possible participation, the Commission on Bullying has asked all the members of the Commission and all the partners of the Stop Bullying Coalition to assist with the outreach. We seek your help to distribute this call for information to your colleagues and networks within Massachusetts.

Please help us reach all of the human services including elder affairs, area agency on aging, mental health, disability and independent living center agencies, legal aid organizations, the police, senior centers and more so that they might reach out to their clients and communities.

We ask that each professional or volunteer help their clients to overcome barriers of language and accessibility. Please assist residents by providing notice of the survey, computer access, and help in responding to the survey. For example, one social worker decided to take her computer and wi-fi hot spot to each residential development she visits and assist residents to take the survey.

Here is a PDF of a poster that can be printed and distributed in your agency and community. http://stopbullyingcoalition.org/commission/survey-flyer.pdf

Can you provide a translation of the key points in the poster into another language? If so, kindly make up an 8.5x11" poster that is ready to print in PDF, text, or Word format and we will make it available for download.

How to take the survey

Go online using any smartphone or computer with an internet connection. https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/BullyingCommissionSurvey
  • If you do not have computer access or skills, or have any problems of accessibility, you may have anyone you choose assist you in filling out the survey.
  • You can use any device with internet access, including smartphones: PCs at a library, senior center, independent living center, or in common areas of housing. More than one person can take the survey using the same device.
  • You may take the survey if you live in a public or subsidized multifamily housing development for elderly and disabled; and the housing is in Massachusetts.
  • You may take the survey if you work on the premises of a public or subsidized multifamily housing development for elderly and disabled; and the housing is in Massachusetts.
  • The survey is also being distributed through multiple channels, including the statewide housing agencies, MassHousing and DHCD. You should not take the survey twice; for instance, if you have already completed it using the link provided by your housing management. If you took a draft survey before October, thank you for your help, and you should take this survey to have your views counted.
  • Your privacy is protected: You will not be asked to identify yourself and your device will not be tracked. Your answers will be recorded by Survey Monkey and will be transmitted in bulk to Michael Kelleher at the Executive Office of Health and Human Services (EHS) at the Commission on Bullying. Paper copies are mailed directly to the Commission on Bullying.

Followup

Sign up to our free newsletter for early access to updates on the work of the Commission on Bullying at https://stopbullyingcoalition.org/subscribe The updates will also be posted at https://StopBullyingCoalition.org

If you have any concerns, questions, or comments; or if you would like to present a statement to the Commission on Bullying, please contact Jerry Halberstadt, a Commissioner. mailto://commissioner@StopBullyingCoalition.org

For any technical or online access issues, contact Michael Kelleher at the Executive Office of Health and Human Services (EHS) mailto://Michael.Kelleher2@MassMail.State.MA.US

You can use a printed copy of the survey if nothing else will work for you. There is a PDF version of the survey which can be printed and used on a very limited basis, limited only because the Commission does not have the staff or resources to handle more than a few hard copies. http://stopbullyingcoalition.org/commission/Survey.pdf

Content of the survey

The survey asks about social life in multifamily housing, counts the presence or absence of developments with bullying or with healthy community life, asks who bullies (no names) and who works to create an open and friendly environment, and ask about the success or failure of efforts to seek relief from bullying. It is just as important to get information about housing that promotes healthy community life as to learn about the hostile and toxic environments that bullying can create.

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