NASHVILLE, Tenn. – U.S. Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) introduced a bipartisan resolution to commemorate Social Media Harms Victim Remembrance Day on June 23, 2024.
“While the internet has had many great benefits for communication, health care, and education, social media’s dark and addictive rabbit holes have harmed too many young people,” said Senator Blackburn. “By designating June 23rd as ‘Social Media Harms Victim Remembrance Day,’ the Senate honors the young people who have lost their lives and have suffered harms on social media platforms.”
Big tech companies have repeatedly shown an inability to safeguard children’s data, ensure online safety, and prevent illicit fentanyl trafficking on their platforms,” said Senator Klobuchar. “We must work together to address these longstanding issues and remember those we have lost.”
- Social Media Harms Victim Remembrance Day was put forward by the families of Carson Bride, Alexander Neville, and Devin Norring. Carson was 16 when he was viciously cyberbullied by his high school classmates who were using anonymous apps on Snapchat. It was eventually too much to bear, and he took his own life. Alex was 14 when a drug dealer connected with him on Snapchat and sold him the pill that took his life. Devin was 19 when he bought what he thought was Percocet on Snapchat for his dental pain and migraines. The pill turned out to be pure fentanyl.
- Senator Blackburn, alongside Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), is the lead sponsor of the bipartisan Kids Online Safety Act, which would require social media companies to make their platforms safer and provide parents with the tools they need to protect their children online.
The full text of the resolution is here.
