Conference speakers warn students of sexting dangers

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 16/01/2018 (2284 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A cellphone can serve as a tool to make a child’s life spiral horribly out of control because they don’t have the maturity to keep boundaries, a conference heard on Wednesday.

School officers with the Winnipeg Police Service regularly investigate complaints of sexting and sharing nude or partially nude personal photos among students, said Insp. Gordon Friesen.

“I don’t think it’s as rare as people think it is,” he said in an interview outside the 2018 Youth Matter Conference.

“I’m sure if you asked kids in there if you know anyone who had a picture taken and circulated around, or saw a (compromising photo of someone they know), I would expect most of those kids probably would have,” he said.

A total of 600 students from 30 different schools across the city listened to speakers discuss topics including cyber-bullying, sexting and sexual predation at the Springs Conference Centre. Speakers included former NHLer Theoren Fleury, and Leah Parsons, mother of Rehtaeh Parsons, who took her own life in 2013 at the age of 17 after a horrible nude shaming on the internet.

Friesen said kids will often feel pressured to engage in sexting. He said a typical conversation might go: “‘Can you take your top off, take a picture and send it to me? I won’t show anybody.'”

“Our officers deal with online situations, whether it’s bullying or circulation of pictures, that kind of thing. It’s happening as we speak,” he said.

Parsons said she has a phone drop-off zone in her house for her kids.

“Actually, it’s a drop-off drawer. At 9:15, the cellphone goes into the drawer,” she said.

“My message is for children to realize the impact their words and actions can have. It all comes down to empathy.”

Rehtaeh was only 15 when she was invited to a sleepover, became drunk and was allegedly raped by four teenage males. A picture from the incident was posted on social media that she could never escape, even after changing schools. Her death triggered a movement that saw stricter laws and greater enforcement of online content among young people.

Parsons said speaking at conferences like Youth Matter is “the way I show my love for my child.” It’s her second time addressing young people in Winnipeg.

Fleury is a former NHL star who scored over 1,000 points in his career, won the Stanley Cup in 1989 with the Calgary Flames and helped Canada win a gold medal at the 2002 winter Olympics, but undisclosed sexual abuse from junior coach Graham James privately gnawed at him.

At the age of 36, he put a fully loaded pistol into his mouth, he said.

Fleury’s message was for kids to talk to parents, guardians or guidance counsellors if they are having emotional issues. Fleury said he grew up in a “tough love, suck it up, don’t talk about it era” and it almost killed him.

“That’s what it’s about. We’ve got to talk to each other,” he said. “We’ve got to get the hell off our smartphones and communicate with each other.”