TWITTERING ON
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50 PLUS MAGAZINE
TWITTERING ON BY ANGELA KELLY
Now, Dame Rachel de Souza, the Children’s Commissioner for England, is urging parents to “talk early and talk often” in an ageappropriate way. She wants children better prepared for this dark side of the online world. She also hopes it will make youngsters feel easier about raising difficult issues going forward. That message has not come as a result of an adult focus group second-guessing modern children’s dilemmas but from the Everyone’s Invited movement which allowed youngsters to air their views.
Sales’ bargains that sometimes aren’t SALES are great, aren’t they? The possibility of a bargain or your longed for outfit suddenly marked down to bargain levels is a thrill. We can all get some amazing deals but there is a danger to grab at items in stores and believe you’ve got a real treasure – only for things to prove a little different. My friend Carol thought she’d hit the jackpot when she saw a lovely little sports’ skirt, ideal for playing badminton. Its price was very attractive so she quickly bought it and went home a happy shopper.
While previously many of us would have suggested waiting until children become teenagers before broaching this one, Rachel de Souza wants parents to begin the conversation much earlier. Using the advice from teens and young adults based on what they wish their parents had known, she has produced a guide to help adults with this possibly tricky conversation. She doesn’t want this to happen all at once, though, but over time and in line with their developing maturity.
However, when she tried it on later, she found she could hardly get it over her hips. So, reluctantly, she returned to the store the next day with the item.
“My advice to parents and carers is to create the culture before the crisis,” she explained to a national newspaper. “Children have told us they want their mums and dads to create a safe, judgement-free space for them to talk about these issues.”
“I loved this skirt, but I can’t get it on,” she told the saleswoman. “I’m not surprised, madam,” was the reply. “This is a boob tube so you’re at the wrong end.”
She’s right. It’s definitely better to tackle this thorny subject before there’s a problem and establish a channel of communication that allows children to talk to parents.
Exit Carol from the shop, red-faced and now re-thinking her sales’ strategy.
Singer Billie Eilish revealed only recently the negative impact that watching pornography from an early age had on her. She started at 11 and it gave her nightmares and made subsequent dating difficult.
Parents need to address porn children watch IT’S a sad reflection of the times that parents are being urged to talk to children as young as nine about online porn. Yet, this is sensible advice given the avalanche of porn available today on all forms of technology, including our children’s mobile phones and iPads. There has been concern for some time about the ease of access for children often browsing the internet unsupervised and the possible damage from the images they see. 6
Frighteningly, this revealed wide-spread sexual harassment and abuse in schools, suggesting that online porn can influence reallife behaviour and attitudes when it comes to gender roles, sex and consent.
There is a huge gap between what parents think happens and their own children’s reality. While only a quarter of parents believe their child has viewed pornography online the truth is that more than half of all 11 to 13 year-olds have. This is a new world to all of us who grew up without smartphones but it’s one that adults urgently need to appreciate. Taking action now is the only way to protect our children properly and help them come to terms with this unsavoury area of life.
