Viral anti-bullying message now available in both official languages

Viral anti-bullying message now available in both official languages

CORNWALL, Ontario – A London, Ont. cop who has strong Cornwall roots has taken an anti-bullying message viral – in both official languages.

Sandasha Ferguson (nee Bough), who grew up in Cornwall, is a school safety officer with the London service.

Part of her duties includes educating young people on the dangers of bullying. She had an idea late last year to combine her love of singing with an anti-bullying message.

What resulted was the completion of a music video that has already garnered thousands of hits on YouTube and also caught the attention of media in her new hometown.

And after the song was recently translated and rerecorded in French, she can reach a new demographic.

“One of the French school boards here in London really wanted to use it in their schools,” she said. “The school board paid for the song to get translated and the new words fit with the music.”

The music video for ‘You’re a VIP’ is directed mainly at young people, especially those who finds themselves in the cross hairs of bullying at school via the Internet.

But there’s also a message for adults.

“Adults deal with (bullying) on a regular basis,” she said in an interview earlier this year. “And no one is talking about it. No one is saying what is happening to them.

“I want to encourage people to talk about it.”

Ferguson said one of the difficulties in her quest to sell an anti-bullying message via song was to find material that promoted a positive bottom line.

Ferguson retained the services of a Guelph songwriter who composed the music and wrote the lyrics.

Ferguson has been an officer with London police for 15 years. ‘You’re a VIP’ is available on iTunes and the video can be viewed here.

Share this article