Maryland Leaping to Save Lives

Maryland school systems will be piloting a new program to deter cyber bullying and the effects that it has on teens. The program was officially announced by Attorney General Doug Gansler, on the morning of October 3, 2013. Each school will appoint a single point person for direct communications with Facebook. The program will identify content on students pages and decide whether it is appropriate or not and abrasive towards other students. If the school stumbles upon something questionable, the appointed spokesperson contacts Facebook directly. “For the first time, Facebook will actually take that language off of Facebook (Gansler).” Depending on the situation and the severity of the bullying law enforcement will be contacted. The Attorney General also stated “If you’re the perpetrator of the cyber bullying, you’re not committing a crime. We’re not going to go after you, but we are going to take down the language off of Facebook, because there’s no redeeming societal value and it’s clearly hurting somebody (Gansler).” Gansler said himself that this would not eliminate cyber bullying, however I think that this is a great step forward. This pilot program will identify the cowards behind their screens and prevent tragedy before it happens. This is an exciting development especially during anti-cyber bullying awareness month. Always remember, think before you click!