Community Intelligence

Where do you draw the line to openly tell all to others in your community? When is it a good practice to keep dialogue within closed doors?

I began to think of this when the television show, House, killed off a character by suicide. Suicide, drugs, teen pregnancy and other disturbing issues are usually swept under the carpet in a community.

When I was a teen, I had an opportunity to participate in an Arctic exchange with a community on Ungava Bay in northern Quebec.  I travelled with a group of my peers to Kuujjuaq and it was culture shock for the Montreal teenagers. The community had one school, one store and not much to do. Our fun was riding snowmobiles and the dance hosted in our honour. When we were approached by someone offering us drugs, which we turned down, the discussion following the incident was kept brief. It could have been used as an educational tool in a talk between the community and the visitors. I’m sure that drug use was prevalent but never talked about.

A few months later I received a phone call from a friend with the news that one of the teens we met from Kuujjuaq killed herself. And there was no explanation.

From a communication perspective many years later, it’s interesting what is kept quiet and what is aired for public consumption. Take a look at Britney Spears and other pop culture stars. We know so many details about their lives but issues within many families in our communities are never discussed.

Why are we so worried about what people think or perceive of us? As you may have heard before, we are all human and can make the same mistakes. That’s where I believe communication has a thin line within a community.

From a corporate perspective, it’s understandable that at times, information is kept quiet. Companies don’t want their competitors to have an upper hand if information falls into the wrong hands. I think companies should maintain lines of open communication internally.

So where do we draw the line for communication in the communities where we live? I don’t think I can be the judge but I do believe we can learn more  and help each other if we welcomed dialogue about sensitive issues.