Fourteen years ago, Travis Price and David Shepherd stood up for a fellow high school student who was being bullied simply for wearing a pink shirt. That night, both young men bought pink shirts and wore them the next day to show support for their fellow student.
That simple act of kindness and sympathy in small-town Nova Scotia has inspired an entire movement dedicated to promoting healthy self-esteem, empathy, compassion and kindness. That is the spirit behind the final Wednesday of February being named Pink Shirt Day in Canada.
Daniel Desorcy, a singer/songwriter based in Steinbach, has written an anti-bullying song titled “Hearts Don’t Hurt.” The song touches on the theme of bullying, with the chorus as follows:
"Let's give a helping hand to all those who need. Let's give a fighting chance before they start to bleed. I know it's not okay. Wake up; kids are dying every day. I pray for God's hand on this world to make it a place where hearts don't hurt."
“Probably due to the pandemic, having a lot more time to sit down, write and think; having nieces and nephews who are seven, six and five years old; probably some movies and TV shows that talk about it more and you see more on the news.”
This style of music is new to Desorcy.
“It was always in my mind that I had to write something catchy or really uplifting to get people’s attention. This song was pretty much, ‘Don’t care what anyone thinks, don’t care if it goes on radio, I’m just going to write it’. I think people should hear it.”
A video version of the song may be coming out soon. Desorcy is welcoming others to get involved.
“Just contact me on Facebook or Instagram. It’s pretty simple. You just have to send in a picture of yourself holding a paper, write something positive on it and you’ll be in the video.”
Last year alone, people in more than 180 countries shared their support of Pink Shirt Day through social media posts and donations.