It’s time for schools to support this change. They needn’t mirror the marketplace. Instead, they should be Walled Gardens that employ all we know about human flourishing — embodied connection, developmentally appropriate methods that cultivate rather than diminish attention, and the professional stewardship that meets our fiduciary responsibilities to younger generations.
It’s time that schools become the architects of the future we want, not the reactionary institutions we’ve come to expect.
To add to this and something they called out in the post — we older digital users don’t know what we missed out on by being addicted to the devices at a young age. So it’s difficult for parents today to see what damage is being done to their kids, therefore difficult see the benefits outweighing the costs, which feel immediate and are largely centered around fear-based “what ifs?” (e.g. fear of an emergency and they don’t have their phone, fear of their kid being left out socially, fear of losing connecting with kids, fear of backlash from being overly restrictive, etc).
That’s why unique voices like Freya’s and your own are so important. They open windows where doors have been shut.
I also think this is where schools can make a difference. While making convincing arguments in the discourse is crucial, facilitating experience is indispensable. Sometimes it’s far more effective to show rather than tell. If young people are given the opportunity to feel differently with the support of adults, like their teachers, in a safe space, like school, they can go home at the end of the day and elect an alternative to their social media feeds because they’ve experienced the difference.
Will this be easy? No. But with committed educators who take this problem seriously, I sincerely believe this can be done.
Will some parents struggle initially? Yes, but there is plenty of evidence to support this endeavour, and ultimately, if their kids are happier, healthier, and more present, the results will speak for themselves.
I know how deeply this problem is felt. I understand how intractable it seems. But I think it’s time that we embrace hope, promote a positive alternative, and get to work bringing it to life.
Totally, love to see our young people leading this fight. Kudos to Freya and team.
Show is almost always more effective than tell for behavioral change. I don’t have kids. Wondering what the current flow or mechanism is for this, as you’ve described? If discourse isn’t enough, how are teachers and students showing these benefits to parents?
And kids often emulate parent behavior — and a large portion of parents are addicted to social media / smartphones. Are we anticipating that change is going to come bottom up?
Will help immensely once we have more data on phone use x health & wealth outcomes. Thanks for sharing.
I think this begins with awareness. Popular opinion changes as trusted experts from various domains tackle the issue publicly. I see this momentum ramping up already. Younger people like Freya are speaking out, healthcare professionals are using a scientific lens to do the same, and more educators like myself are eager to join the chorus.
In education, there is mounting pedagogical evidence, supported by both cognitive and neuro-science, that helps explain that many of the technologies we’ve integrated into the classroom interfere with working memory and cognitive load. Anecdotally, I have conversations with high school students on a weekly basis about their desire to stop using social media and to engage in more embodied experiences with their friends. Some of them have bravely taken the first steps in doing so. But others need the support and permission of authority figures in their lives to do so.
School leadership is crucial here. I’ve seen principals who have successfully done this in their communities. There were letters sent to families, parent assemblies after school hours, and constant reminders that these changes support for their kids’ wellbeing, development, and actually improve their safety rather than putting it at risk.
As with any big change, it’s a collective action problem. 60 years ago, everyone smoked. Now, it’s a minority in many nations.
But I write about this in much greater detail and will continue to do so. I’d be very grateful if you’d be interested in following along.
Some folks at a digital minimalist organization I've worked with cite the smoking parallel as well. It's a good vision to have for overcoming an chemical addiction (cigarettes causally linked to cancer), but far less abstract and less contested than psychosomatic conditions correlated with (or caused by) social media and smartphone addiction. So that's going be a hurdle for a while, have to be careful about false equivalencies there, albeit it is a great goal/vision to set.
There's an angle outside of health risks, learning, and well-being outcomes that I see some of the Luddite communities leaning into: it turns out staring at a screen all day just isn't very..."cool." haha How to convey this cultural idea (or reality) to people — particularly young people — when culture itself is being introduced through screens is a challenge in itself. Put another way: we need the tools, but not like "that." That's a heavy burden to put on people, particularly young people, which is one of the reasons I've agreed with the guidance on age limits for social media. But, for young people, banned things can also have a backfire effect where those vices become glorified and highly sought after. That's a delicate dance.
Think about it this way — had the evidence never come out that cigarette smoking caused cancer, that the effect was merely psychological, would we have seen the behavioral shift we've seen? How much do we rely on the scientific evidence to shift behavior vs. cultural norms? How can we amplify Freya's and more young voices, and the voices of influential figures like actors, musicians, athletes that we view through our screens and social media, but whom don't use social media themselves? Because there are plenty.... Maybe we just don't notice because they're not posting?
As a survivor of Gen Z, smartphones and social media, and now a public speaker and writer about my experiences, deletion was the only way I got my mind back in 2022. I’ve been encouraging other Gen Z, and organizations like After Babel, to push for this message. Because, as I’ve mentioned before, there are a ton of us who have grown up and already lost life. Deletion of it all is the way through it, and the way to reclaim a life lost. It is the first step of what we can actually do about it, though it doesn’t end here.
I want to greatly reduce phone (& tablet & laptop) use in my college classroom, but the textbook companies are making it impossible to do so because of their pricing. Ebooks (through their platform, usually, so not easy to engage with) are significantly cheaper than print books, which are outrageously expensive. Universities like mine are trying to reduce the costs of textbooks for students (since the rests of the costs of university have risen tremendously). So my university is pushing etextbooks hard. This means, of course, combined with learning management systems that are also required, that we are almost forced to allow tech devices to be on during class. And the students are mostly not reading. And they’re looking up quick answers on AI/the internet instead of searching themselves in the books. And they’re texting and playing video games and watching videos during class (including ones required for other classes). I yearn for a tech-less college classroom, but that has been made almost impossible, especially when departments require standard (online) textbooks in the gen ed classes.
“Learning management systems” — can there be any worse sterile, invasive and tyrannical thing? It has now been proven beyond doubt that reading from a paper book is totally superior to anything and writing with pen on paper retains and engages your mind 100 percent more in class. Look it up to smash the studies in their face. So, you and others lead the backlash. Textbook prices should be free soon, seeing as AI is trying to eliminate your professor’s job.
This article and the movement is the beginning of awareness—realizing what we’ve experienced as a culture is not normal and should not be normalized.
I am not Gen Z but recently stepped away from social media and it is freeing. There is more space to focus on the things I enjoy. I wish you well with this endeavor.
Fabulous article! So many adults are with your older adults of Gen Z. Yes. Use your grief for change! As far as your grief, you can regain what you have lost from helping others to ensure they do not experience your grief from losses! As an adult, who believes in the youth, whatever I can do to help your older adults within your Gen Z generation, please let me know!
social media, technology and advertising never makes anyone do anything. We choose our life trajectories and we have only ourselves to praise or to blame for the outcomes. Leave technology alone and let us all continually and forever work on ourselves. That is the only way that things will ever change. It must also be remembered that people with disabilities are going to once again be left out of the loop if technology keeps getting a bad name. I did not see a way to comment so I needed to reply. This is not meant just for the person I am replying to, it is meant for us all.
Beth, I completely disagree with you. First, this reflection by Freya India isn’t focused on people with disabilities. It’s a non sequitur to introduce it besides being a topic of its own unique focus. Second, the powerful manipulative abilities of the ever evolving algorithm far out weigh a human’s ability to choose freely and wisely. It takes extraordinary human consciousness to be aware of algorithmic intrusions and their distortions. Young minds don’t have a chance at fighting this alone.
Social media, advertisements and ads can heavily influence one s actions. Should one want to help themselves help others who share your issues Healing occurs faster when people help each other real communication of issues, real experiences, real consequences explored both negative and positive. Technology for people with disabilities is not dismissed. These individuals use technology to socialize with others or to receive education or even the ability to speak to one another. Technology for disabled individuals is not a technology that is heavily influenced from ads or advertisements. Social media can harm the young with the number of friends. No real definition. Of the different friendships occurs Many students thought all were their friends on social media. But when the term friendship is explored many students listed terms such as honesty or trust that these friendships do not provide. Not even a labeling of acquaintances. Too much was lost from technology. Define friendships and then can you provide those items you listed as a friend to others you call friend as well as yourself as a friend. Relationships are a 2 way street. I am all for people with disabilities having technology for their needs. But the article I replied above, did not specify those people as part of the article. I am sure the author who wrote that article would agree that those with disabilities be given technology for them to do what they need to do for themselves. I ask you, Beth, do you object to the article or my reply as well as my conclusion to help any Gen Z adult to the best of my ability to regain what they lost. Is that upsetting to you?
I'm getting rid of my smartphone by the end of the month. It's not just apps. It's the entire device. I'm so tired of it. My son is 7 months old and I do ok but I still don't even want him to have memories of me on my phone all the time. My parents were constantly in front of the TV or had it on, it is a horrible habit once you start. It's hard to break but I need to break it. Love this article and the whole idea. My son will never be an iPad kid. I refuse.
We were also told we should be on screens because there would be so many jobs in tech and using technology. AI will eventually make all of that null and void too. I am OK with going back to a simpler time. All the things these devices and technology promised: increased connection, increased knowledge, increased peace, higher quality of life. It's all been long gone and inverted and now it's being used against us. To addict, divide, consume our most valuable resource: time. I am over it and everyday I look forward to getting out of this phone contract and downgrading. I don't need it anymore.
You Got It! You are becoming wiser than them all. Do you have a public library card? Go get the best picture books for your son. And make that time you read to him your bond and his future. Reading to him is the way to literacy. Make Way For Ducklings is one beautiful classic book. Allow him to enjoy going to that Children’s room at library every week.
How funny you say this, we are heading to Half Price Books today to get a lot more books. I'd say in the last week he actually enjoys us reading to him and examining the pictures, rather than just putting everything in his mouth 😂 thank you for the kind words and advice
I am nodding and championing your every word. I am convicted. I am going to be a first time Grammy in April and I refuse to be distracted. I’ll buy a solid 35mm camera and enjoy making picture albums again. Thank you for your share above!
Thank you Freya for supporting this initiative. I would also suggest that in the midst of the addiction vacuum created by deleted of SM, that the void needs to be filled through a sustainable routine of getting outside, and realigning biological rhythms - aka being addicted to the sunrise.
From this grandmother to you precious people. Please know that Refuse can be done and has been done. For us it was : refuse to just stay at home, refuse to have unprotected sex, refuse the closed doors, refuse the glass ceilings, refuse the at fault divorce process. You get the idea. Find your own way to refuse. And after refuse comes, so much fun and liberation!
How many alcohol beverages would you say you drink on a given week?
Are you using tobacco?
What are your screentime statistics?
I keep saying, it’s not just harmful to kids. Maybe a case could be made that adults have a higher faculty of agency (and that’s why we have age restrictions on alcohol and tobacco) but honestly, I doubt it.
Most people, adults included, are running on autopilot. Stimulus, response. Stimulus, response.
That’s why the scrolling apps are so habit forming: it’s a scientifically honed formula for a stimulus that engenders the response preferred by the app creators.
I know the crisis is the younger people and it’s great for Freya and After Babel to focus there. At the same time, our Boomer parents have got to be getting addicted at similar rates to our Gen Alpha children. Just from my personal, anecdotal observation.
As a boomer, I agree! I do believe the youth is where we triage, so that another generation is not lost. And God bless all who are spearheading and helping this effort! But my middle-aged and boomer friends, especially the ‘late-boomers,’ live on their phones. And dare I say female friends more than male in this regard? I think for many the ability to showcase life and appearance “just so” is a way of prolonging a sense of excitement and relevance in this very anxious and disposable world. But at least for us, it’s an add-on to a formed identity. We did not have ours stolen. I’ve often thought of the ubiquitous, seamless and almost pre-conscious meld of tech with our young peoples’ brains, minds and even souls as a form of the old Star-Trek Borg which completely usurped its victims, via a transplanted device, even as they realized their individuality was lost. “Resistance is futile” was the sentence of the Borg against those who struggled. May that NOT be the sentence imposed on the brave young men and women fighting this battle, for themselves and millions of others!!
My kids are Gen X, but they also have an addiction problem, mildler I suppose. But when I see kids out there today, it's like their phone is part of their body.
I share the concerns about too much tech, about negative influences on human behavior, and especially (but not only) for severe impacts on young people.
But I don't like the language and implied morality as expressed by Freya. Claims of oppression and stolen lives, while perhaps rhetorically useful and even emotionally accurate, sound too much like post-modern/critical theory/woke/grievance studies politics, which IMO are destructive to free society. And it might be a stretch to claim that companies colonized brains through screens.
I see a distinct difference between using force of arms to steal lives and possessions, and offering products--as destructive as they might be--for people to choose to use. And I fear any movement that claims authority to ban products or use, no matter how noble the cause.
So please do advise people of your concerns. Encourage them to make better choices. But try to be rational. And try to respect liberty.
Age matters. Children do not need liberty. Adults can choose freely, children do not have the faculties or experiences to choose wisely (as well as some adults).
I would like to ‘like’ this comment 1000 times. Children do not need liberty, they need guidance (from parents). They need to be protected from the ‘guidance’ of social media and the internet. It’s difficult enough for adults to navigate internet ‘influencers’ - children are wholly vulnerable, innocent, and unequipped to handle this. This is exactly why the term ‘influencer’ has always rankled me. Beware of whom you allow to influence you, and especially who influences your children!
Thank you. I call my daughter and I the OG of this issue. She's 26, a recovered social media suicide survivor, and helping young adults develop the skills to deal with the real world that weren't taught during their formative teen years.
When she was 16 in the hospital under suicide support, her mother and I were standing outside the locked doors wondering how, where they went wrong. Today we know, it wasn't us, it truly was social media. If I could go back, I would not have handed her a phone when she was 13. The greatest regret of my life. It was my idea. But, my angel is a phoenix and has risen to become the voice of recovery. Social media isn't heroin, but to a 15 year old teen, it may as well be. There's a 50 50 chance they'll survive. I know. My daughter tried to committ suicide 6 times.
My heart goes out to your daughter and your family. For the "sensitives" among us, the dangers are tenfold, and your daughter in her advocacy for others is most certainly a "sensitive". A tragic experience transformed into a voice of recovery. May her blessings and yours be many, lain.
If anything the brain, especially the vaunted prefrontal cortex, continues developing into the 30s and 40s, and perhaps beyond. So the idea that people below some arbitrary age somehow "don't need liberty" is ridiculous at best, and the implications are pretty dark indeed.
It's important to keep in mind children are children. Santa Claus is real, cartoons are entertaining, Blues Clues is informative. See where I'm going. Having raised three, yes, liberty comes like letting them walk to school alone, go out with a boy or girl without parents supervision. It's gradually assigned from the parent to the child. The right age depends on both parent and child but generally, 17 or 18 seems about right. But I still pay my 30 year old's cell phone bill. So, liberty is subjective sometimes too...LOL.
Of course, this is true. But, liberty to develop naturally without potentially harmful interactions should be considered too.
Children need guidance, especially under the ever escalating manipulation happening via social media (across all ages). Discernment is necessary to navigating the web. We don't allow doctors to practice without credentials/education. Neither should we enable a child's access to adult arenas online for which they are unprepared.
I wasn't suggesting that 20 year-olds should be restricted. But I am of the opinion that 13 year-olds are at the most impressionable and vulnerable stage of their lives, and that parental guidance in understanding the inherent hazards of online interaction is necessary to their growth and personal/psychological safety.
With proper guidance, kids can thrive into adulthood, online and off. Of course our brains continue to evolve as we age, but the trajectory of that growth would appear to be healthier if actual or perceived trauma isn't part of the equation.
In all other ways, as parents, our truest intention is to protect our children, and to prepare them for the challenges ahead. Technology, in many ways, has made that task more formidable.
I'm suggesting mindful guidance, an awareness of the risks of unrestricted access, a call to consider the very real repercussions of overlooking or underthinking our reliance on social media to shape young lives.
This call to refuse is coming from a generation that evolved under this paradigm. A generation denied guardrails to safeguard what they see as lost childhood. Surely, we should be listening as they try to raise awareness of the lost time, the lost innocence, and the lost childhood they're now grieving.
Great article here. As an older Gen Z guy myself, I can speak first-hand to the effects of the smartphone and daily internet and social media exposure has had on my life. I know many, many guys that have had the same experience as me. I think you've really struck a chord by calling our maladapted childhoods an opportunity to speak with wisdom into the lives of younger generations.
Anyway, I just signed the petition. Sounds like a great event, I wish I was in NYC to join.
Thanks to everyone who commented because it’s here that we can figure out the next steps toward betterness. All comments provide insight, but the more critical ones help expose the gaps in the movement to correct for unbridled technology capture. Capture is a biz/regulatory term with unfortunate consequences: market capture and regulatory capture are 2 strategies that enable dominance. Tons of examples in the past of misuse of power in thrall to profit, without with power diminishes. The human face of misused dominance is the evidence but dismantling structural enablers is what make for betterness. And that gives me hope!
Thanks for sharing Ms India's manifesto. As a concerned grandparent, I have grieved over the pressures and consequences of social media and internet garbage on my grandkids. It is so encouraging to see these Gen Z activists getting the message out to their peers. I have forwarded the manifesto and guide to my adult children and will encourage them to share with their kids!
It’s time for schools to support this change. They needn’t mirror the marketplace. Instead, they should be Walled Gardens that employ all we know about human flourishing — embodied connection, developmentally appropriate methods that cultivate rather than diminish attention, and the professional stewardship that meets our fiduciary responsibilities to younger generations.
It’s time that schools become the architects of the future we want, not the reactionary institutions we’ve come to expect.
https://open.substack.com/pub/walledgardenedu/p/the-disappearing-art-of-deep-learning?r=f74da&utm_medium=ios
100% agree. Parents are passing down their trauma (smartphone addiction) to their kids. Schools can’t act without parents agreeing to the change.
To add to this and something they called out in the post — we older digital users don’t know what we missed out on by being addicted to the devices at a young age. So it’s difficult for parents today to see what damage is being done to their kids, therefore difficult see the benefits outweighing the costs, which feel immediate and are largely centered around fear-based “what ifs?” (e.g. fear of an emergency and they don’t have their phone, fear of their kid being left out socially, fear of losing connecting with kids, fear of backlash from being overly restrictive, etc).
That’s why unique voices like Freya’s and your own are so important. They open windows where doors have been shut.
I also think this is where schools can make a difference. While making convincing arguments in the discourse is crucial, facilitating experience is indispensable. Sometimes it’s far more effective to show rather than tell. If young people are given the opportunity to feel differently with the support of adults, like their teachers, in a safe space, like school, they can go home at the end of the day and elect an alternative to their social media feeds because they’ve experienced the difference.
Will this be easy? No. But with committed educators who take this problem seriously, I sincerely believe this can be done.
Will some parents struggle initially? Yes, but there is plenty of evidence to support this endeavour, and ultimately, if their kids are happier, healthier, and more present, the results will speak for themselves.
I know how deeply this problem is felt. I understand how intractable it seems. But I think it’s time that we embrace hope, promote a positive alternative, and get to work bringing it to life.
Totally, love to see our young people leading this fight. Kudos to Freya and team.
Show is almost always more effective than tell for behavioral change. I don’t have kids. Wondering what the current flow or mechanism is for this, as you’ve described? If discourse isn’t enough, how are teachers and students showing these benefits to parents?
And kids often emulate parent behavior — and a large portion of parents are addicted to social media / smartphones. Are we anticipating that change is going to come bottom up?
Will help immensely once we have more data on phone use x health & wealth outcomes. Thanks for sharing.
Great questions, Travis.
I think this begins with awareness. Popular opinion changes as trusted experts from various domains tackle the issue publicly. I see this momentum ramping up already. Younger people like Freya are speaking out, healthcare professionals are using a scientific lens to do the same, and more educators like myself are eager to join the chorus.
In education, there is mounting pedagogical evidence, supported by both cognitive and neuro-science, that helps explain that many of the technologies we’ve integrated into the classroom interfere with working memory and cognitive load. Anecdotally, I have conversations with high school students on a weekly basis about their desire to stop using social media and to engage in more embodied experiences with their friends. Some of them have bravely taken the first steps in doing so. But others need the support and permission of authority figures in their lives to do so.
School leadership is crucial here. I’ve seen principals who have successfully done this in their communities. There were letters sent to families, parent assemblies after school hours, and constant reminders that these changes support for their kids’ wellbeing, development, and actually improve their safety rather than putting it at risk.
As with any big change, it’s a collective action problem. 60 years ago, everyone smoked. Now, it’s a minority in many nations.
But I write about this in much greater detail and will continue to do so. I’d be very grateful if you’d be interested in following along.
Some folks at a digital minimalist organization I've worked with cite the smoking parallel as well. It's a good vision to have for overcoming an chemical addiction (cigarettes causally linked to cancer), but far less abstract and less contested than psychosomatic conditions correlated with (or caused by) social media and smartphone addiction. So that's going be a hurdle for a while, have to be careful about false equivalencies there, albeit it is a great goal/vision to set.
There's an angle outside of health risks, learning, and well-being outcomes that I see some of the Luddite communities leaning into: it turns out staring at a screen all day just isn't very..."cool." haha How to convey this cultural idea (or reality) to people — particularly young people — when culture itself is being introduced through screens is a challenge in itself. Put another way: we need the tools, but not like "that." That's a heavy burden to put on people, particularly young people, which is one of the reasons I've agreed with the guidance on age limits for social media. But, for young people, banned things can also have a backfire effect where those vices become glorified and highly sought after. That's a delicate dance.
Think about it this way — had the evidence never come out that cigarette smoking caused cancer, that the effect was merely psychological, would we have seen the behavioral shift we've seen? How much do we rely on the scientific evidence to shift behavior vs. cultural norms? How can we amplify Freya's and more young voices, and the voices of influential figures like actors, musicians, athletes that we view through our screens and social media, but whom don't use social media themselves? Because there are plenty.... Maybe we just don't notice because they're not posting?
Thanks for reading / providing feedback.
-Travis
As a survivor of Gen Z, smartphones and social media, and now a public speaker and writer about my experiences, deletion was the only way I got my mind back in 2022. I’ve been encouraging other Gen Z, and organizations like After Babel, to push for this message. Because, as I’ve mentioned before, there are a ton of us who have grown up and already lost life. Deletion of it all is the way through it, and the way to reclaim a life lost. It is the first step of what we can actually do about it, though it doesn’t end here.
https://open.substack.com/pub/digitalelse/p/reboot-in-progress-press-any-key?r=5dvy0a&utm_medium=ios
I want to greatly reduce phone (& tablet & laptop) use in my college classroom, but the textbook companies are making it impossible to do so because of their pricing. Ebooks (through their platform, usually, so not easy to engage with) are significantly cheaper than print books, which are outrageously expensive. Universities like mine are trying to reduce the costs of textbooks for students (since the rests of the costs of university have risen tremendously). So my university is pushing etextbooks hard. This means, of course, combined with learning management systems that are also required, that we are almost forced to allow tech devices to be on during class. And the students are mostly not reading. And they’re looking up quick answers on AI/the internet instead of searching themselves in the books. And they’re texting and playing video games and watching videos during class (including ones required for other classes). I yearn for a tech-less college classroom, but that has been made almost impossible, especially when departments require standard (online) textbooks in the gen ed classes.
“Learning management systems” — can there be any worse sterile, invasive and tyrannical thing? It has now been proven beyond doubt that reading from a paper book is totally superior to anything and writing with pen on paper retains and engages your mind 100 percent more in class. Look it up to smash the studies in their face. So, you and others lead the backlash. Textbook prices should be free soon, seeing as AI is trying to eliminate your professor’s job.
This article and the movement is the beginning of awareness—realizing what we’ve experienced as a culture is not normal and should not be normalized.
I am not Gen Z but recently stepped away from social media and it is freeing. There is more space to focus on the things I enjoy. I wish you well with this endeavor.
Fabulous article! So many adults are with your older adults of Gen Z. Yes. Use your grief for change! As far as your grief, you can regain what you have lost from helping others to ensure they do not experience your grief from losses! As an adult, who believes in the youth, whatever I can do to help your older adults within your Gen Z generation, please let me know!
social media, technology and advertising never makes anyone do anything. We choose our life trajectories and we have only ourselves to praise or to blame for the outcomes. Leave technology alone and let us all continually and forever work on ourselves. That is the only way that things will ever change. It must also be remembered that people with disabilities are going to once again be left out of the loop if technology keeps getting a bad name. I did not see a way to comment so I needed to reply. This is not meant just for the person I am replying to, it is meant for us all.
Beth, I completely disagree with you. First, this reflection by Freya India isn’t focused on people with disabilities. It’s a non sequitur to introduce it besides being a topic of its own unique focus. Second, the powerful manipulative abilities of the ever evolving algorithm far out weigh a human’s ability to choose freely and wisely. It takes extraordinary human consciousness to be aware of algorithmic intrusions and their distortions. Young minds don’t have a chance at fighting this alone.
Social media, advertisements and ads can heavily influence one s actions. Should one want to help themselves help others who share your issues Healing occurs faster when people help each other real communication of issues, real experiences, real consequences explored both negative and positive. Technology for people with disabilities is not dismissed. These individuals use technology to socialize with others or to receive education or even the ability to speak to one another. Technology for disabled individuals is not a technology that is heavily influenced from ads or advertisements. Social media can harm the young with the number of friends. No real definition. Of the different friendships occurs Many students thought all were their friends on social media. But when the term friendship is explored many students listed terms such as honesty or trust that these friendships do not provide. Not even a labeling of acquaintances. Too much was lost from technology. Define friendships and then can you provide those items you listed as a friend to others you call friend as well as yourself as a friend. Relationships are a 2 way street. I am all for people with disabilities having technology for their needs. But the article I replied above, did not specify those people as part of the article. I am sure the author who wrote that article would agree that those with disabilities be given technology for them to do what they need to do for themselves. I ask you, Beth, do you object to the article or my reply as well as my conclusion to help any Gen Z adult to the best of my ability to regain what they lost. Is that upsetting to you?
I'm getting rid of my smartphone by the end of the month. It's not just apps. It's the entire device. I'm so tired of it. My son is 7 months old and I do ok but I still don't even want him to have memories of me on my phone all the time. My parents were constantly in front of the TV or had it on, it is a horrible habit once you start. It's hard to break but I need to break it. Love this article and the whole idea. My son will never be an iPad kid. I refuse.
We were also told we should be on screens because there would be so many jobs in tech and using technology. AI will eventually make all of that null and void too. I am OK with going back to a simpler time. All the things these devices and technology promised: increased connection, increased knowledge, increased peace, higher quality of life. It's all been long gone and inverted and now it's being used against us. To addict, divide, consume our most valuable resource: time. I am over it and everyday I look forward to getting out of this phone contract and downgrading. I don't need it anymore.
You Got It! You are becoming wiser than them all. Do you have a public library card? Go get the best picture books for your son. And make that time you read to him your bond and his future. Reading to him is the way to literacy. Make Way For Ducklings is one beautiful classic book. Allow him to enjoy going to that Children’s room at library every week.
How funny you say this, we are heading to Half Price Books today to get a lot more books. I'd say in the last week he actually enjoys us reading to him and examining the pictures, rather than just putting everything in his mouth 😂 thank you for the kind words and advice
Great, little by little his attention span will grow. Soon he will be asking for his favorites🤠
I am nodding and championing your every word. I am convicted. I am going to be a first time Grammy in April and I refuse to be distracted. I’ll buy a solid 35mm camera and enjoy making picture albums again. Thank you for your share above!
Thank you Freya for supporting this initiative. I would also suggest that in the midst of the addiction vacuum created by deleted of SM, that the void needs to be filled through a sustainable routine of getting outside, and realigning biological rhythms - aka being addicted to the sunrise.
From this grandmother to you precious people. Please know that Refuse can be done and has been done. For us it was : refuse to just stay at home, refuse to have unprotected sex, refuse the closed doors, refuse the glass ceilings, refuse the at fault divorce process. You get the idea. Find your own way to refuse. And after refuse comes, so much fun and liberation!
Doctors ten years from now:
How many alcohol beverages would you say you drink on a given week?
Are you using tobacco?
What are your screentime statistics?
I keep saying, it’s not just harmful to kids. Maybe a case could be made that adults have a higher faculty of agency (and that’s why we have age restrictions on alcohol and tobacco) but honestly, I doubt it.
Most people, adults included, are running on autopilot. Stimulus, response. Stimulus, response.
That’s why the scrolling apps are so habit forming: it’s a scientifically honed formula for a stimulus that engenders the response preferred by the app creators.
I know the crisis is the younger people and it’s great for Freya and After Babel to focus there. At the same time, our Boomer parents have got to be getting addicted at similar rates to our Gen Alpha children. Just from my personal, anecdotal observation.
As a boomer, I agree! I do believe the youth is where we triage, so that another generation is not lost. And God bless all who are spearheading and helping this effort! But my middle-aged and boomer friends, especially the ‘late-boomers,’ live on their phones. And dare I say female friends more than male in this regard? I think for many the ability to showcase life and appearance “just so” is a way of prolonging a sense of excitement and relevance in this very anxious and disposable world. But at least for us, it’s an add-on to a formed identity. We did not have ours stolen. I’ve often thought of the ubiquitous, seamless and almost pre-conscious meld of tech with our young peoples’ brains, minds and even souls as a form of the old Star-Trek Borg which completely usurped its victims, via a transplanted device, even as they realized their individuality was lost. “Resistance is futile” was the sentence of the Borg against those who struggled. May that NOT be the sentence imposed on the brave young men and women fighting this battle, for themselves and millions of others!!
My kids are Gen X, but they also have an addiction problem, mildler I suppose. But when I see kids out there today, it's like their phone is part of their body.
A Gen Z employee scanned the QR code on my phone to see “One Battle After Another” - fitting.
“What is this device?” - he asked referring to my phone.
“It’s a Light Phone,” I replied. “It doesn’t support any social apps.”
“Oh, that’s so cool!” - he exclaimed.
Change comes with setting an example in every day life, every day circumstances. Conversations start and soon the world is a different place.
I share the concerns about too much tech, about negative influences on human behavior, and especially (but not only) for severe impacts on young people.
But I don't like the language and implied morality as expressed by Freya. Claims of oppression and stolen lives, while perhaps rhetorically useful and even emotionally accurate, sound too much like post-modern/critical theory/woke/grievance studies politics, which IMO are destructive to free society. And it might be a stretch to claim that companies colonized brains through screens.
I see a distinct difference between using force of arms to steal lives and possessions, and offering products--as destructive as they might be--for people to choose to use. And I fear any movement that claims authority to ban products or use, no matter how noble the cause.
So please do advise people of your concerns. Encourage them to make better choices. But try to be rational. And try to respect liberty.
Age matters. Children do not need liberty. Adults can choose freely, children do not have the faculties or experiences to choose wisely (as well as some adults).
I would like to ‘like’ this comment 1000 times. Children do not need liberty, they need guidance (from parents). They need to be protected from the ‘guidance’ of social media and the internet. It’s difficult enough for adults to navigate internet ‘influencers’ - children are wholly vulnerable, innocent, and unequipped to handle this. This is exactly why the term ‘influencer’ has always rankled me. Beware of whom you allow to influence you, and especially who influences your children!
Thank you. I call my daughter and I the OG of this issue. She's 26, a recovered social media suicide survivor, and helping young adults develop the skills to deal with the real world that weren't taught during their formative teen years.
When she was 16 in the hospital under suicide support, her mother and I were standing outside the locked doors wondering how, where they went wrong. Today we know, it wasn't us, it truly was social media. If I could go back, I would not have handed her a phone when she was 13. The greatest regret of my life. It was my idea. But, my angel is a phoenix and has risen to become the voice of recovery. Social media isn't heroin, but to a 15 year old teen, it may as well be. There's a 50 50 chance they'll survive. I know. My daughter tried to committ suicide 6 times.
My heart goes out to your daughter and your family. For the "sensitives" among us, the dangers are tenfold, and your daughter in her advocacy for others is most certainly a "sensitive". A tragic experience transformed into a voice of recovery. May her blessings and yours be many, lain.
Ditto on liking both of your comments 1000 times :)
Here's a simple fact - our forebrain (responsible for decision making) is not fully developed until the mid 20's.
This is an informative article that every parent and educator should read:
https://www.nhnscr.org/blog/frontal-lobe-development-understanding-brain-development-by-age/.
If anything the brain, especially the vaunted prefrontal cortex, continues developing into the 30s and 40s, and perhaps beyond. So the idea that people below some arbitrary age somehow "don't need liberty" is ridiculous at best, and the implications are pretty dark indeed.
Liberty is a human right, and children are humans beings too.
It's important to keep in mind children are children. Santa Claus is real, cartoons are entertaining, Blues Clues is informative. See where I'm going. Having raised three, yes, liberty comes like letting them walk to school alone, go out with a boy or girl without parents supervision. It's gradually assigned from the parent to the child. The right age depends on both parent and child but generally, 17 or 18 seems about right. But I still pay my 30 year old's cell phone bill. So, liberty is subjective sometimes too...LOL.
Of course, this is true. But, liberty to develop naturally without potentially harmful interactions should be considered too.
Children need guidance, especially under the ever escalating manipulation happening via social media (across all ages). Discernment is necessary to navigating the web. We don't allow doctors to practice without credentials/education. Neither should we enable a child's access to adult arenas online for which they are unprepared.
I wasn't suggesting that 20 year-olds should be restricted. But I am of the opinion that 13 year-olds are at the most impressionable and vulnerable stage of their lives, and that parental guidance in understanding the inherent hazards of online interaction is necessary to their growth and personal/psychological safety.
With proper guidance, kids can thrive into adulthood, online and off. Of course our brains continue to evolve as we age, but the trajectory of that growth would appear to be healthier if actual or perceived trauma isn't part of the equation.
In all other ways, as parents, our truest intention is to protect our children, and to prepare them for the challenges ahead. Technology, in many ways, has made that task more formidable.
I'm suggesting mindful guidance, an awareness of the risks of unrestricted access, a call to consider the very real repercussions of overlooking or underthinking our reliance on social media to shape young lives.
This call to refuse is coming from a generation that evolved under this paradigm. A generation denied guardrails to safeguard what they see as lost childhood. Surely, we should be listening as they try to raise awareness of the lost time, the lost innocence, and the lost childhood they're now grieving.
Experience, as always, is the best teacher.
Great article here. As an older Gen Z guy myself, I can speak first-hand to the effects of the smartphone and daily internet and social media exposure has had on my life. I know many, many guys that have had the same experience as me. I think you've really struck a chord by calling our maladapted childhoods an opportunity to speak with wisdom into the lives of younger generations.
Anyway, I just signed the petition. Sounds like a great event, I wish I was in NYC to join.
Well done. Praying for parents and young ones eveywhere that they would see their worth by connecting IRL with God and family IRL not tech.
Thanks to everyone who commented because it’s here that we can figure out the next steps toward betterness. All comments provide insight, but the more critical ones help expose the gaps in the movement to correct for unbridled technology capture. Capture is a biz/regulatory term with unfortunate consequences: market capture and regulatory capture are 2 strategies that enable dominance. Tons of examples in the past of misuse of power in thrall to profit, without with power diminishes. The human face of misused dominance is the evidence but dismantling structural enablers is what make for betterness. And that gives me hope!
Thanks for sharing Ms India's manifesto. As a concerned grandparent, I have grieved over the pressures and consequences of social media and internet garbage on my grandkids. It is so encouraging to see these Gen Z activists getting the message out to their peers. I have forwarded the manifesto and guide to my adult children and will encourage them to share with their kids!