The Blog of P.U.R.E. and Sue Scheff

In 2017 we heard a lot about digital resilience , but do we understand what it is? Helping our teens be ready for online hate and digital discourse offline can better prepare them when they are faced with it. Reality is that incivility exists - sadly this is a human behavior that we don't have control over, but we can choose how we handle it. Today our kids consider their digital life as important as their lives offline, so it's important to give them as much knowledge and encouragement to know they are not alone when they are faced with cyber-hate. Cyberbullying is not only impacting our teen's emotionally - it causes them to miss school, become withdrawn, drop out of sports or other activities they once enjoyed, failing when they were once good students, changing peer groups or becoming isolated and more. Teens can experience a higher level of stress and anxiety when they are struggling with online bullying. The most troubling outcome of cyberbullying and online ha...

There are many forms of online cruelty. The irony of it is I read so much about youth bullying, and I don't want to diminish that it is an important issue -- but the fact is adults are not only victims  of harassment, they can be the perpetrators too.   As I continue to write about bullying and cyberbullying, it never ceases to amaze me how many different ways people have discovered to hate others -- whether it is on the playground or virtually, peer cruelty doesn't seem to have any limits or boundaries.  Yes, the very people that should be our children's role models (sports figures, celebrities, politicians, teachers, elders, etc... people we should respect ) can be the direct people that are acting like children online or otherwise. We have heard the stories of fat shaming , face shaming, parent shaming (moms judging moms), baby shaming , cyber-shaming and this year I read more about the ugliness of slut shaming  (from adults)....

It's no longer about a simple mean tweet or harsh comment, we are now dealing with verbal violence and cyber-harassment.    Shame Nation: The Global Epidemic of Online Hate (Sourcebooks) is finally here, make no mistake about it, we're all a click away from digital disaster. With 92% of Americans armed with smartphones -- ready to record your most embarrassing moments. The rise of social media and "always-on connectivity" has broadened the scope of online harassment.  Harassers can be anonymous and reach you 24/7, posting messages and photos that are difficult to erase. Whether in the form of cyberbullying among teens and children, or cyber harassment among adults, online harassment comes in many different forms and can lead to detrimental effects, both emotionally and physically. Fortunately, there are ways that we can protect ourselves, our children, and others from cyberbullying and cyber harassment. There are best practices for online safety, common...