The latest episode of “Silence Broken: The IPV Talks” is putting a different kind of back-to-school preparation in the spotlight for local families: helping young people recognize pressure, consent and unsafe behaviour before problems grow.
Host Bob Perreault was joined by Lanark County Interval House executive director Erin Lee and LanarkLeedsToday.ca reporter Jessica Minnie to examine the move from middle school to high school and the social pressures that can come with it.
The conversation focused on social media, where private information and intimate images can be shared without permission. Minnie, an Algonquin College graduate who attended high school locally, recalled seeing the impact.
Lee says those experiences can be part of a pattern involving emotional abuse, manipulation, digital stalking or coercion. She says education about consent needs to grow along with young people as relationships and social situations become more complicated.
Lee says parents can help by keeping communication open and giving young people room to ask questions without fear or embarrassment.
The discussion will continue next week with a closer look at the transition from high school into post-secondary life.
The latest episode of Silence Broken is now streaming below.
