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13-year-old B.C. hockey player quits team over bullying

Jamison Ladd penned a letter alleging that coaches did not do enough to resolve harassment
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Jamison Ladd penned a letter to his coaches announcing that he was quitting the team after he said bullying was not properly addressed.

Months of bullying and verbal abuse turned hockey into a toxic environment, according to a 13-year-old Abbotsford resident.

Jamison Ladd penned a resignation letter to the coaches of his Bantam C3 team stating his intentions to quit the team after he says the harassment failed to improve.

His father, Garrett Ladd, said the bullying initially began with his teammates poking fun at Jamisonsa国际传媒檚 athleticism, but then escalated to racial slurs.

sa国际传媒淭he kids were making references to him looking like a Jewish character from a book and making anti-Semitic remarks,sa国际传媒 Garrett said. sa国际传媒淭hey were referencing the Holocaust and using other racial slurs towards him and other kids. I donsa国际传媒檛 think these people understand the gravity of what they were saying.sa国际传媒

After learning of the harassment, Garrett said he informed the coaches of what had occurred, but after saying they would deal with it, the bullying continued. Garrett said he then told the coaches he would press harder for more discipline, and one of the alleged bullies was suspended in late-December.

sa国际传媒淏ut the kid went right back into the locker room right after he was suspended and told everyone on the team immediately what had just happened and who was the reason for it,sa国际传媒 Garrett said. sa国际传媒淚t didnsa国际传媒檛 improve anything.sa国际传媒

Garrett said the coaches of Jamisonsa国际传媒檚 team were not properly supervising the team and werensa国际传媒檛 following the Hockey Canada sa国际传媒渢wo-deep policy,sa国际传媒 which calls for at least two adult supervisors in the dressing room at all times.

sa国际传媒淭hings would continue to happen when they werensa国际传媒檛 in the room and Jamison would have to leave the room to find them and tell them,sa国际传媒 he said. sa国际传媒淚t made it hard for him to do anything.sa国际传媒

Garrett said it eventually became too much for Jamison and he wrote the letter to his coaches to announce he was departing the team.

The AMHAsa国际传媒檚 procedure for reporting violations recommends that issues be addressed at the lowest level possible, beginning by player to player and moving up. Garrett believes that the AMHA failed to follow that policy when dealing with the boys bullying his son.

sa国际传媒淭hese comments were unacceptable at any level and we reported it early,sa国际传媒 he said. sa国际传媒淭he coaches were aware and, when one of the kids was suspended, the executives were to be notified, at least thatsa国际传媒檚 what we were told.sa国际传媒

Since sharing the letter on social media, Garrett has had a meeting with AMHA executives. During that meeting, he said that the executives stated that they had no idea of the situation.

sa国际传媒淲e thought everyone knew and now everyone is saying they didnsa国际传媒檛 know what was going on and are implying we didnsa国际传媒檛 follow proper reporting procedures. There has been no apology or admission of responsibility at all. No one asked how Jamison or my family is doing. They seem more concerned with alleviating themselves of culpability.sa国际传媒

Garrett said he has heard nothing from AMHA president Janine Rizzo and that Bantam division director Jason Wienberger said he was blindsided by the news. However, according to the bullying policy they both should have been informed.

He added he and his family have received positive feedback from other local families, who said they have also experienced bullying through the AMHA, but were encouraged to remain silent.

The AMHA has not yet responded to an interview request from The News.



Ben Lypka

About the Author: Ben Lypka

I joined the Abbotsford News in 2015.
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