For A Safer Internet
This CHAPTER has taken me very long to finish, but now I am finally happy to announce the departure from ONLINE. In these articles as well as the complimentary YouTube videos since my transfer to long-form content, we have discussed cyberbullying and online abuse from multiple perspectives and points of view. Most of them have had at least one thing in common: they’ve all been more or less negative, focusing on all the terrible stuff that happens in the online world. Granted, we wouldn’t be talking about cyberbullying if we didn’t address all the horrible ways it has traumatized and even killed its victims, but for the last note of this CHAPTER, I wanted to talk about the positives. Because at the end of the day, if we can’t make things better for everyone who uses the Internet—especially children—that what really is the point in even talking about it? Focusing solely on the negatives is a perfect method of making yourself feel like there is no hope for a better future, and that is something we simply cannot have when it comes to anti-bullying labor.
Watch the speedpaint for the illustration present in this article and listen to me talk about the ways we should make the Internet a safer place for children by watching one of my recent YouTube videos. You can view the video directly in the embed below or watch it directly on YouTube by clicking this link.
human right.
As we’ve discussed in multiple articles present in this CHAPTER, it is fairly common for people to try their absolute hardest to find ways to justify cyberbullying and online abuse. It is arguably one of those specific forms of bullying that get this kind of treatment the most, and for that, we can find multiple reasons. By far, the most common argument seems to be that no one absolutely has to be on the Internet, and therefore any claims of abuse are the direct responsibility of the victim. This, in turn, falls under the common reasonings for any kind of victim-blaming, as we often think the victim is responsible for making sure to flee the scene they are being abused in. I don’t think I need to go over why this framework of thinking is as toxic and dangerous as it is.
Something that tends to get overlooked by people who feel this way about cyberbullying is that we are all entitled to a life free from abuse and violence. It is a basic human right that we all have, and nothing will ever take that away from us. It doesn’t matter where you are, what your community is like, what your hobbies or interests are, if you belong to a marginalized demographic or not, you still have the right live without being abused.
My personal hypothesis for why this facet of human rights gets swept under the rug is that we are currently living in a time where all of us are experiencing a lack of empathy. Shit has gotten so incredibly tough for so many of us due to systemic oppression and discrimination, and the people who are responsible for said oppression and discrimination are benefitting from it so much that neither one of the parties is able to experience empathy for others to the extent that we perhaps should be. It is difficult to care about others when your own life is really difficult, or to the contary, when your personal life is going so well nothing else really matters to you. Obviously, that’s not to say that I agree with this sentiment, this is simply what I have observed over the years.
Maybe it’s because of what I have decided to do with my life after going through severe and complex childhood trauma, but all of these hardships that me, my loved ones, and the people in my community—including the online community I have fostered—have made me even more dedicated to bringing more good into the world with my art. Cyberbullying as a topic is one that gets laughed at by everyone, even its victims, and for someone like me, the severe consequences of such abuse is of no laughing matter. I want to do everything I can to make the Internet a little bit safer, especially for the Kids from Today.
The fundamental human right of being safe and free from abuse of all kinds was the main source of inspiration for the illustration I created for this article and the end of ONLINE. We all deserve and have the right to exist wherever we are without fear of being attacked or assaulted, and that includes the Internet. I hope you’ll join me in making the global Forum safer and more accepting, because that is what we all are owed. If anything, do it for the little you, for your younger sibling, for the queer kids, for Amanda Todd…whoever is the closest to you, and remember them every time you leave a comment in a public comment section. Don’t let anger and desperation consume you and turn you into an abuser yourself. You are so much better than that, my friend.
Logging off,
ichigonya
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