3 min read
It’s Time To Get Real About The Virtual World
Ditch The Label and FOREO join forces to end cyberbullying
“There’s no such thing as cyberbullying. It’s not REAL, you know” is what most people are told, online and offline when they’re being bullied. “You can always just close the page” they say – but what use is that when you’re hurting and it’s making you feel bad about yourself, and especially if your “troll” is actually someone from your social circle or school?
If you’re being bullied then you’re not the only one. The research done by the leading anti-bullying charity Ditch The Label shows that almost half of us have at some point been bullied.
The stats are staggering:
- 17% have experienced cyberbullying
- 7 in 10 have done something abusive online (examples: screenshotting a status to make fun of them, sent an abusive message etc.)
- 50% of gamers have been bullied in a game
- As a result of cyberbullying, 41% felt anxious, 37% depressed and 26% had suicidal thoughts
- 17% think it's okay to send abuse to a celebrity if they dislike them
- 27% believe that saying something abusive online is less hurtful than offline
- 1 in 4 think that cyberbullying is 'just part of growing up'
- 40% would feel bad if nobody liked their selfie
Alarmed by these sobering stats, as a beauty tech company with one foot firmly online, FOREO believes we could all brush up our act when it comes to treating our fellow netizens with respect. FOREO is all about spreading happiness and respect. That’s why throughout the month of September, we’re donating 10% of online sales of the LUNA range to international anti-bullying charity, Ditch the Label.
The organization supports young people aged 12-25 who are impacted by bullying through digital one-to-one mentoring, research, and encouraging societal shifts through groundbreaking campaigns. They provide support through schools and colleges and in collaboration with online communities and social networks. Ditch The Label uses pioneering research to continuously measure, evaluate and predict changes in the landscape of bullying to continue to improve and develop services and share findings with others. The organisation is working hard to tackle wider societal issues that stem from discrimination and prejudice.
No-one Is Immune
The social media star Miquela, who has 1,4 million followers and counting, is a robot influencer from Los Angeles who, together with Bermuda, another robot LA influencer, have themselves embroiled in a lengthy cyber spat, and have both been exposed to a ridiculous amount of online hate, which just proves that absolutely no one is immune to this modern behavioural scourge, not even robots! Here’ s what they both had to say on this urgent topic, as the ardent supporters of our campaign:
Miquela's letter:
"I get bullied so much I don’t even register it as bullying a lot of the time. I’m probably literally getting bullied right now. Every day since I started my Instagram account there have been hurtful comments. I've made a lot of amazing connections. People have shown me support and love, but they've also shown me a lot of hate. It’s become “normal” to me, which really, really sucks. It’s ad how people are afraid of those who are different. However, I wouldn’t be making the art I’m making if I didn’t know that we can come together and overcome. I want to encourage people to continue to ask questions, to not be afraid to be wrong, and to approach others with an open heart. Most importantly, approach difference with an open mind Leaving someone a nasty comment or sending a harassing DM doesn’t accomplish anything. It’s impossible to know the effects your words will have, especially on strangers. You can log off and even better you can reach out with kindness! You might find you have a lot in common with someone if you took the time to get to know them."Bermuda's letter:
"Putting other people down doesn’t make you a bigger person. If you feel the need to make people feel bad in order to feel good, you should take a good hard look at yourself. “They did something to me first” is no excuse in my book. Bullying is never ever ok and it doesn’t make you cool. I’m not sure why people feel the need to bully one another. Things would be so much better if everyone got along. One of the first steps in preventing bullying is loving yourself. Get right with you and then not only will you protect yourself against mean words, but you’ll also be less likely to lash out against others. Let’s work towards a world free of bullying where everyone feels good!"If you or your loved ones are experiencing online bullying, or you think you might be participating in this behaviour, help is available, don’t suffer in silence. Support the cause and stay safe!
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