In the wake of Amanda Todd’s death: it’s time for us to wake up

Photo Source: YouTube (Screen grab)

All of last week and still today, my social media feeds have been flooded with news of and reflections on Amanda Todd’s story.

According to the National Post, the 15-year old Coquitlam student took her life on Wednesday as a result of a cyberbullying campaign that first took its form when she was in Grade 7. A month prior to her death, she posted a very chilling and moving YouTube video outlining her “never ending story.” Todd refrained from any verbal communication in her video, opting instead to use cue cards to share her story. Her last card read, “I have nobody. I need someone.”

As previously mentioned, reactions to her death have been overflowing on social media streams, mine included. Combinations of heartache and anger have been expressed in tweets and Facebook posts. One Facebook post, by an Elizabeth Isaak, reads, “RIP Amanda Todd, your life had purpose. Your story will live on and you will be remebered (sic) long after your tormentors are gone.”

Amanda Todd’s story is incredibly tragic. Perhaps more tragic, however, is that it is not an isolated case. According to Cyberbullying statistics from the i-SAFE foundation, more than 1 in 3 young people have experienced cyber threats online. Isaak’s post recognizes that Todd’s life had purpose. And yet, if we do not wake up to the reality that this happens everyday; that we as online citizens have a direct responsibility to each other, then the young life lost on Wednesday was for naught.

Why do we distance ourselves and wait for these tragedies to hit close to home before dedicating attention and thought to these situations? Would it be so far-fetched for social media to play a role in preventing cyberbullying, instead of in fostering it? How can we, as an online community, act to ensure this?

Seeing the community come together in the face of tragedy offers a glimmer of hope. The reflections made and the respects paid are assurance that despite it all, there are still good-hearted, properly-minded people in this world. However, if we do not sincerely learn from Amanda Todd and her story; if we fail to move beyond written and spoken reflection, then we will surely find ourselves time and time again in the aftermath of tragedy after tragedy.

October is National Anti-Bullying Month. In remembrance of Amanda Todd, let’s make it count.

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