This is normally out of the social remit of the editorial platform of Thrive50plus.com. However sometimes things come up that stops us all in our tracks, and cause us to reflect on the very nature of the medium we use and depend on in our day to day lives.
The importance of — and the implication of –and the tragic death of, yet another young teenager, Bathurst schoolgirl Matilda “Tilly” Rosewarne, which has prompted me to write this column.
Unsocial media. It has long been the untouchable and faceless cowards’ canvas where anything goes. Unsocial media’s keyboard zealot’s post hate speech without any obvious consequences or filters.
Facebook, Snapchat, Twitter, and YouTube-parent Google have shown no real interest in policing this most dangerous behaviour.
I held a great hope that the laws that were inspired the tragic teen Dolly Everett, would put cyberbullies in jail for up to five years.
Yet another event has occurred, and the police or government authorities seem the powerless to act to find justice for this poor child and her grief-stricken family.
The family of a country teenager who suicided after years of cruel torment from bullies have spoken out on the day of her funeral, heartbroken there was no safety net to catch their little girl.
Bathurst schoolgirl Matilda “Tilly” Rosewarne, 15, lost her life to suicide in mid-February, after what her parents have described as years of bullying, both online and in person.
As she was farewelled by family and friends at the Bathurst Harness Racing Club on Tuesday, her mother Emma Mason bravely spoke out about the need for change.
Ms Mason is calling for a zero-tolerance approach to bullying, and for new measures, such as the introduction of a mandatory database of students’ phone numbers at school.
“Tilly died from a thousand cuts that occurred over the course of her short life,” her mother Emma Mason told the media: “From not being invited to parties, to having fake nudes spread on social media,” she said.
“We want to do everything we can to make sure no other little humans go through this.”
Once a vibrant, kind teenager, who loved to dance, paint and was a star debater, her mother says. But years of bullying led to her developing depression, anxiety, and traits of borderline personality disorder.
“She was an innately kind, gentle, spirited child. Animals and kids would just gravitate to her. She had a really soft spirit and was an innately easy kid,” Ms Mason said.
The bullying started with her being excluded from events by her peers, but escalated to cyber bullying and even death threats and suicide taunts, her mother said.
One of the bullies circulated a fake nude image of Tilly on Snapchat and a Belgian porn website, which led to another suicide attempt.
A complaint was lodged with police. However, Ms Mason said, police had “significant difficulties” confirming who the Snapchat account belonged to, and ultimately, she decided to pull the investigation.
“By the time those events happened, she became really unwell, and she didn’t want to do any more [police] interviews,” she said.
Before she took her life, she was seeing a psychiatrist and psychologist, but denied having suicidal thoughts, which, her mother says, meant she couldn’t be involuntarily admitted.
Ms Mason said before she suicided, a bully said to Tilly: “you didn’t kill yourself hard enough”. Days later, she was found dead.
Tilly’s family is now bravely pleading with authorities and parents that “something has to change”.
She is urging people to move past simple “policies” or observing events like R U OK Day and to have “real, hard conversations.”
“And finally, to stress to our young people…. Every post you write, every image you share, every word you say, has an impact,” Ms Mason said.
eSafety Commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, said one in five Australian children are bullied online, often with devastating outcomes.
“The insidious nature of online bullying means kids can’t just leave it at the front door. It follows them home from school and into their bedrooms” she said.
Ms Inman Grant said reports of cyber bullying and image-based abuse can be lodged with, and investigated by, the eSafety Commissioner.
A spokesperson for NSW Police said officers attached to Chifley Police District have commenced an investigation into Tilly’s death on the behalf of the Coroner.
Snapchat was contacted for comment, but has not done so, at the date of this publication.
If you or someone you know needs assistance:
Lifeline on 13 11 14 or https://www.lifeline.org.au/
Beyond Blue 1300 224 636, or at www.beyondblue.org.au
SOMETHING HAS TO CHANGE
Below is an Extract from the Record of Service prepared for the funeral of Tilly Rosewarne:
“Tilly’s death is certainly a tragedy and, although she died on February 16 2022, in reality her death was the result of a myriad of events, each of which cut into Tilly’s soul and destroyed who she believed herself to be.”
Sadly, Tilly died from a thousand cuts that occurred over the course of her short life.
From eight-year-old girls telling her they had all voted and it should have been her father who died (after the death of another “friend’s” father) to not being invited to various birthday parties that ‘everyone’ is at, and then having people ring, text and taunt her all night long from that same party.
To having fake ‘nudes’ being spread on social media; to meeting up with “friends” at the local shopping centre, only to have them harass her and verbally abuse her in public; to return to school from hospital to be shunned and marginalised as ‘too hot’ to handle.
These things and many others occurred both at school and outside of school.
Every post you write, every image you share, every word you say, has an impact.
The failures of multiple schools to appropriately manage bullying that had occurred on their school grounds, and by their students, reveals a systemic problem in our education system — where this behaviour is minimised as ‘uncontrollable’, because it occurs at recess or lunch, or more fundamentally excused because “they come from a good family”.
We share these examples (of which there are unfortunately many more) not to cast blame at any one person, or one school, but to plead with all our educators and parents that something has to change.
If anything can come from the loss of Tilly, we wish that our education system moves past the security of “having a policy” or observing “RU OK” days, to ensuring that real, hard conversations are had, and that bullying behaviour is challenged and stopped; and that genuine repercussions are followed through.
And finally, to stress to our young people … Every post you write, every image you share, every word you say, has an impact.
We beg you, before you post, share or speak, ask yourself three questions: Is it true? Is it kind? Is it necessary?
If the answer is “No” to any of these questions, do not post, do not share, or do not speak. We beg you.
Because no one ever knows when these actions are that human’s deepest cut … or the last cut.
Reprinted with the permission of the Rosewarne Family.
Under existing Commonwealth laws, trolls using a carriage service to menace, harass or cause offence face a maximum of only three years in prison. The NSW offence of stalking or intimidation carries a five-year prison sentence.
The amendments, that were to be introduced into state parliament some- time ago were aimed at protecting people from online abuse,ranging from cyber-bullying and trolling, through to stalking and harassment of domestic or personal violence victims.
Examples of what will be covered by the laws, include posting threatening or hurtful messages on social media sites such as Facebook or Twitter, posting abusive images or videos, and repeatedly sending unwanted messages or abusive emails.
However, it will still be up to the courts to determine the level of criminality of an individual’s online activities, while police will also use their discretion over potential charges.
The then Premier Gladys Berejiklian said the changes would not affect “free speech”.
“These changes recognise that online abuse can cause victims significant psychological trauma and have potentially devastating, even tragic consequences,” she said.
“The changes are not aimed at policing free speech. They are aimed at preventing abuse.”
The then Attorney-General Mark Speakman said the reforms addressed a trend of harassing victims on social media.
“This activity can make its victims feel scared, powerless and depressed,” he said.
“The government is committed to protecting the community from new threats that arise with advances in technology.”
Those fresh new laws came in response to the tragic death of Dolly as a child, smiling in an Akubra hat, when she was the face of the iconic Australian brand, has been shared around the world in a social media campaign sparked by her parents to raise awareness of the dangers of online hate speech and bulling.
Yet overseas, the German Government started by enforcing a law that fines social media companies for not deleting hate speech on their platforms.
Internet companies like Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, and YouTube-parent Google need to take heed. The new law carries fines of up to $60 million per infringement if companies fail to remove posts that are “obviously illegal.”
Germany has started enforcing the controversial hate speech law that carries hefty fines for social media companies that fail to quickly remove objectionable content.
The law, which was passed in June 2017, went into effect Monday the 8th of January 2018, officially granting internet companies like Facebook, Snapchat, Twitter, and YouTube-parent Google just a 24-hour window to remove offending posts once a user flags them for review.
The law carries fines of up to $60 million per post if companies fail to remove posts that are “obviously illegal” within 24 hours. It grants a week to consider more ambiguous cases.
The “Network Enforcement Act”, colloquially referred to as the “Facebook law,” also includes defamatory posts and incitements of violence and social bulling.
All three companies have previously said they’ll cooperate with the new restrictions.
Twitter declined to comment on how the company would operate under the new law. Google did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
“We’re committed to removing hate speech any time we become aware of it,” Facebook said in a June statement in on the company’s blog.
We here in Australia are dragging the chain. We need to act now. How many of our most venerable community members need it die before our political lords and masters get tough on these low life bastards?
HOW MANY?
