Tuesday, Feb. 9, 2021 is Safer Internet Day; a day to join together to make the internet a safer and better place for all, and especially for children and young people. Defend Dignity is happy to celebrate this important effort through information sharing, conversation, and engagement.
In Canada, Defend Dignity supports the excellent work of the Canadian Centre for Child Protection, which heads up Safer Internet Day nationally. Through their site, you have access to age-specific information on the interests and risks of youth online, as well as emerging issues for each age group. They also have read-along comic book about safe internet use, geared to children around grade 3 or 4.
We’ve made it easy for you to engage on this issue. Defend Dignity has been working to encourage companies to have safer internet access and content for several years through our Choose Change campaign. This year, with more online activity by kids of all ages, we have focused on Social Media companies, asking them to increase safety features in their apps, so children can enjoy the creative and entertaining aspects, while having a safe online experience. Go to the Choose Change site where you can send a letter to Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok executives asking them to keep improving user safety on their apps.
Another way to engage is to support a Canadian Bill, Protecting Young Persons from Exposure to Pornography Act. This Bill aims to protect the mental health of young persons by protecting them from the harmful effects of exposure to sexually explicit material online. You can support this Bill by emailing your Senators in Ottawa.