Every year, thousands of people take their life because of online abuse. A life is worth so much more than a nasty comment.
Following the death of Caroline Flack and so many others who have suffered at the hands of trolls online, I am inspired to encourage a real change so that this doesn’t have to happen anymore.
So many people are growing up only knowing social media and being exposed to this kind of behaviour from such an early age can cause mental health problems, identity issues and low self esteem.
We should all be able to express ourselves in a constructive manner without having to degrade somebody else in the process.
Today I am asking social media companies to help me bring this change. First things first. We need to make it ILLEGAL to abuse people online. You wouldn’t be able to go up to someone on the street and abuse them without consequence so, why is it that social media and the wider internet has become a safe haven for this to happen.
Second of all, we should make it a requirement that people signing up to create social media accounts online should have to provide ID to prove who they are and how old they are. This can help social media companies tailor the type of content people see in order to protect them and in addition, enable people to be held accountable for their illegal behaviour online.
Finally, in order to keep our young people safe I am requesting that anybody who has committed sexual offences or has been forced to sign the sex offenders register should be forced to declare this when signing up to social media. My reason for this is that people are more accessible online than they may be in the real world therefore it makes them more vulnerable to being targeted. Implementing these measures will keep them safe.
If you have any questions about this petition or want to discuss it with me, contact me on Instagram @nohun_
Until then, I hope you will join me in making social media a safer and more accepting place for all.
