{ Cyber Bullying, Anonymity and The “Yik Yak” Debacle Town Hall #7

 “Yik Yak acts like a local bulletin board for your area [1.5 mile radius] by showing the most recent posts from other users around you. It allows anyone to connect and share information with others without having to know them.”  “News, funny experiences, shoutouts and jokes spread faster than ever through Yik Yak’s tight knit community.” For those who don’t know…

 The Model Congress team traveled to Washington DC to attend Princeton Model Congress, one of its two trips.  Yik Yak was used as a means of communication between delegates.  Junior Boaz Willis said, “It was all just to coordinate funny things. In our full session, at one point, we all coughed at the same time. Another time we all did the “Mockingjay” whistle. Even the chairs were in on the jokes and participated.”  It was also occasionally used to anonymously embarrass delegates when they spoke to a crowd of 100+ kids. Last weekend…

 Yik Yak took Shalhevet by storm, and soon, much of the student body had downloaded the app.  There were various kinds of “yaks”… Yesterday…

 “Bump if you’re a fireahwk”  “Beiber is back in the JCC!!!!!!!!”  “Getting caught at 5901<“  “Pigeon racing club meeting in founders at lunch”  “S/O to buckley’s bagelim”  “*teacher* is a prophet” There were some harmless ones…

 “YAK AS MUCH AS YOU CAN IN *class*”  “Chesed fair- free stuff, nothing to do with actual chesed”  “*teacher* looks like the lion from Madagascar”  “*female student* wishes she was dating *male student*”  “*student,* get the *expletive* out of our class”  “All the junior boys are gay”  “When ur teachers being a lil *expletive* ”  “*expletive* my principal in the *expletive*” And there were some disturbing ones…

 “This is disgusting. Biggest chillul HaShem”  “How long until the admin shuts this down”  “I think this is incredibly destructive and cowardly – rabbi segal (genuinely me)” And finally, some responses…

 Yik yak is an app that only incites the negative. It's cowardly comments, perceptions, and musings from the peanut gallery about any and all topics in the context of anonymity and by proxy no accountability for one's comments.” Shalhevet Alumnus Justin Brandt-Sarif said…

 52% of teenagers report being cyber bullied  11% of teenagers are subject to embarrassing or damaging photos without their consent or knowledge  Over half of all teenagers witness cyber bullying  95% of teens who witness cyber bullying don’t take action  More than half of cyber bullying victims don’t tell their parents Cyber Bullying

 Statement from Rabbi Segal:  "I think anonymity has a tremendous amount of power but as with all powerful things, it can be used for good or for evil. When people hide behind the screen of a cell phone and say nasty things about other people without ever stopping, for a moment, to think how it might impact that person - I think that’s cowardly. I think it shows that they are insecure - but that doesn’t give them the right to hurt others. It’s easy to type hateful words - but if you can't say it to someone in person, then don't say it. And if it is something that you feel needs to be said, then have the guts and courage to walk up to that person and say it." Anonymity…

 How do we, as a community respond to the recent events, and what are the next steps moving forward?  How can we prevent such occurrences from happening in the future?  Cyber bullying vs. face to face bullying?  Is school “drama” any different than indirect cyber bullying?  Is anonymous cyber bullying worse than outright bullying?  How can we prevent the same thing from happening at other schools? Questions to consider…