It has been brought to the attention of MVRHS administration that the app Yik Yak is being used by some students. We wanted to share some information about this anonymous platform so that caregivers are aware of the concerns we as a school community have and can support their students in making good decisions around social media.
What is Yik Yak?
Yik Yak is an anonymous location-based forum or message board (similar to Twitter but localized). Users can connect with people within a five-mile radius of location to chat, ask questions, gossip, share information, etc. Other users are able to comment, upvote or downvote messages posted on the board.
The new Yik Yak has instituted “community guardrails” to curb bullying and threats of violence which prohibits bullying, defamation, hate speech, humiliation and threats of violence. Violations can lead to an immediate ban on the platform. A unique feature removes posts from view that get just five “down votes”. However, even with these “guardrails” in place, we are seeing an uptick in cyberbullying. This is harmful to individuals and our community as a whole. The impact of social media to widely circulate unkind statements and actions has had an undeniable impact on anxiety and depression in teens. We want to take a stand against this.
As was the case when the app was popular in the 2010’s, students have come forward to report significant cyberbullying taking place towards students and adults in our school community. Because the app is anonymous, we have no way of knowing who is posting hateful comments.
MVRHS will continue to educate our students around the negative impacts of harassment and cyberbullying. We have a zero tolerance policy for such behavior and want to encourage our entire school community to understand the importance of being an active bystander. In support of our stance, here are some ideas to get the conversation started at home:
Ideas to get the conversation started:
- What do you know about Yik Yak? Do you use it? Do your friends use it?
- What do you think the pros and cons are for anonymous apps?
- Have you yourself been a target cyberbullying on social media or seen others be targets?
- How have you handled incidents of harassment or cyberbullying?
- What are some other ways to foster positivity online that are anonymous? That is not anonymous?
- What are the ways you feel that you most authentically give other people positive feedback? Give yourself positive feedback?
- Most of us are our own harshest critics. Do you have tricks to help you notice when you are putting yourself down? What compliments do you ever give yourself?
- Do you know the resources available to you at school to report cyberbullying and/or get support around bullying/cyberbullying?
- Do you know what an active bystander is? What support do you need to become an active bystander?