Talks / Ideas / Philosophy

Whose childhood, whose safety? Marginalised youth and social media bans

Houghton Street

Thu 19 Nov · 18:30 · Free

90m · Talk

About this event

As governments, democratic and authoritarian alike, restrict children's access to social media in the name of protection, this event asks a harder question: protection for whom, and from what? Bans are typically justified through an abstract, universal image of "the child," but their effects fall unevenly on children already unequally safeguarded. Drawing on cases of LGBTQ+ youth, racial minority youth, migrant and displaced children, and child activists, this event argues that social media bans redistribute risks—cutting off self-built support networks, family contact, and community for some, severely impacting their rights—while leaving the underlying harms caused by social media business models intact. In debates leading up to the UK’s announcement of a social media ban, prominent parent-led voices were heard. Children, however, were not mentioned by the Government, nor did it address how bans might affect them differently. In this public event, we explore how marginalised and minority youth may be affected by social media bans and how a child rights-respecting approach can incorporate their perspectives.