CBC: - “...It hurts,” he told the crowd gathered at Fraserview Hall. “It don't make no difference how old or what grade you in when people laugh at you.” Holyfield, speaking at a fundraiser for the Amanda Todd Legacy Fund, says he was laughed at as a child because he couldn't read. “They started laughing at me in kindergarten,” he said. “It is amazing in kindergarten when they say you don't know your alphabet and you sitting then there seeing people the same age and everybody laugh and the teacher don't stop them.” Amanda Todd's mother Carol said Holyfield’s involvement is a huge help to the cause. “It was like, ‘Wow. This is big news having someone like him wanting to be attached to the [Amanda Todd] Legacy Fund,’” she said..." - CBC News, Evander Holyfield fights bullying at Amanda Todd fundraiser, Jan 29 2013 (READ MORE)
Vancouver Sun: - "...Like many of his generation, Holyfield lamented the fact that today’s kids “are putting things on (Facebook and other online forums) and doing it to themselves, putting your whole business on a website. “Who in the world wants to put your business on the website when it’s going to be on there forever? Somebody can be reminding you of everything you do wrong. People don’t understand what they doing to themselves by all this publicity.” Holyfield has 11 kids of his own by six different women. Several of them, he put into private school, he says, to make sure they got every opportunity to succeed. Some of them jumped off the right path, he admits, “but they got back on. I don’t ever give up on ’em..." - Gary Kingston, Evander Holyfield hopes to help knock out bullying, Vancouver Sun, Jan 26 2013 (READ MORE)
The Province: - "...Well the Amanda Todd organization I will be going down and speaking on their behalf. I’ve realized the discipline you have as a fighter, you go in the ring, and everything ain’t always well, some days you don’t feel good. You have to show up, you have to stand up. It’s pretty much your confidence that allows you show up all the time, speak up when things are not right, you open your mouth and speak. I think the same thing goes for the bullying program. I spoke with a lot of people about it. I said, everybody is vulnerable, a lot of times with bullying, a lot of people look at it a little different. My mother taught me at a young age don’t be afraid, you cannot worry about what people say about you, do what you have to do. We have to talk to parents; it’s our responsibility to equip our children for what life is really about. When I was a kid and they talked about bullying I thought, wow, I thought bullying was when you were picking on someone and that person gets scared, that’s a part of bullying. I didn’t know the bullying they were talking about mean people saying things. In the neighborhood that I lived in, it’ one of those things where people call you nicknames, people came up and called you names. If you didn’t have thick skin, you would have a tough time. Parents need to prepare their kids. We as parents have to say, we live in a society where people feel that the freedom of speech is to embarrass you. I saw the other day, I was surprised, but President Clinton said he was bullied. I thought, people jumped on him? No, he was fat. He spoke about it. The thing with Tyson I realized, you can talk about it all you want, but you have to stand up, and that comes from your parents. Nobody chooses their parents, but learning this comes from your parents. It’s the parents’ job to make that effort..." - Lev Jackson, A conversation with Evander Holyfield, The Province, Jan 27 2013 (READ MORE)
Arbitrage: - "...Amanda Todd, a grade ten student from British Columbia, broke the hearts of Canadians when she committed suicide on October 10, 2012. Like many teenagers, she made a mistake due to a lapse in judgement and paid for her mistake as the result of bullying..." - Chantelle (Tilly) Wark, Bullying - The Amanda Todd Case, Arbitrage, Dec 24 2012 (READ MORE)
Evander Holyfield (born October 19, 1962) is an American professional boxer. He is a former Undisputed World Champion in both the cruiserweight and heavyweight divisions, earning him the nickname "The Real Deal." After winning the bronze medal in the Light Heavyweight division at the 1984 Summer Olympics, he debuted as a professional at the age of 21. - Wikipedia (READ MORE)
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- Coquitlam teens start online anti-bullying campaign
- Year in Ideas: High-profile suicides such as Amanda Todd’s show there are no simple answers
- Evander Holyfield - A voice on Anti-bullying (Amanda Todd Legacy Foundation) (Video)
