SHENIA ROBERTS
JOURAL STAFF WRITER
Video footage depicting a group of young men allegedly inappropriately touching another
young man in an act of bullying has been circulating across social media for the past few days.
Considering this many Bahamians have taken to social media platforms demanding justice for
the young boy and calling on officials to take action.
During an interview with press outside the House Of Assembly on Wednesday Member Of
Parliament for Englerston and Minister Of Education and Technical and Vocational Education
Glenys Hanna Martin, spoke to the state of mental health among the youth of our nation
expressing that we as a community must self-reflect .
She noted that considering many recent tragedies involving young people we must pay closer
attention to the emotional and mental aspects of their lives. She said “ what we saw in those
images were very disturbing on a number of levels , but we have to begin to reflect, self-
reflection is important” as she explained that we all have a role to play in shaping the younger
generation.
Furthermore, she added that “we need self-reflection as a people, community and nation to
inquire of ourselves, what is happening and why we are creating levels of dysfunctionality in
this way.” She also noted that authorities have been notified and that investigations into the
matter are underway.
Consequently, Minister Hanna Martin highlighted several resources available to young people
in the community and schools as she emphasized the importance of mental health among
young people. She expressed that a lot of our youth are at risk , lacking guidance and
emotional support emphasizing that “We have to now first of all face that reality and then we
have to see as a collective grouping how we can come together and address the concerns we
are seeing with our young people.”
Minister Hanna Martin added that due to this fact the ministry has taken steps to ensure that
all students are met with the resources they need to thrive at school stating that “On every
campus we have guidance counsellors and I want to encourage our children to reach out to
your guidance counsellors if you have concerns.” In addition to this she says all campuses are
fully outfitted with SRO’s which are police officers specifically trained to work in schools with
young people.
She emphasized that it would take the collective efforts of home, school, community and
society to foster real change among the youth of our nation. Minister Hanna Martin reiterated
that the videoed abuse should be a wake-up call for all Bahamians and should cause us to self-
reflect as a nation

Minister Hanna Martin is encouraging all young people to make use of the various resources
not just in school but throughout the community and calling on the adults in the community to
pay close attention to the mental health of their loved ones.