Activists gather at Meta London HQ to protest ‘dangerous’ social media firms
Young people who say social media algorithms are “addictive” and “dangerous” gathered to protest outside Meta’s London headquarters on Wednesday morning.
The demonstration, organized by charity Mad Youth Organisation, called on the government to break the power of big tech. It comes just days after MPs rejected a proposed blanket ban on social media for under-16s, opting instead to give ministers additional, more flexible powers after consultation.
The group agrees that a social media ban is not the solution. Unveiling a billboard reading “Young mental health crisis – Sponsored by Meta”, they are calling for a 4 per cent “misery tax” to be imposed on UK tech companies’ revenues instead, with the money fed back into positive action through mental health services and the creation of new, community-led platforms.
The group points out that there are currently more than 550,000 children and young people on waiting lists for mental health treatment in England, according to the latest NHS data. They say social media also played a role in this.
Diarmaid McDonald, director of Just Treat, the campaign group behind Mad Youth Organisation, said the protest was organized to “recognise the critical role social media plays in harming people’s health”.
“We think every firm responsible for the youth mental health crisis across many sectors should pay a four per cent tax to fund a massive increase in services,” he explained. “It’s about trying not to react immediately to this really important problem and implementing a solution that won’t solve the problem and will make other problems worse.”
One of the protesters, 27-year-old Chloe Yates, was only 11 years old when she first started using social media. He believes that by the age of 15 he was already addicted and began to struggle with his mental health. At the same time, she said, she began being presented with more extreme content on her feeds, which “accelerated” her illness.
“I wasn’t looking for that,” he said. “Maybe one of them showed up and I looked at it. Then it fed to me very quickly.”
He said his social media use fueled “violent” messages and thoughts that were not actually his own, including suicidal ideation and intent to harm himself, as well as certain methods of acting on them.
Ms Yates believes the mass of “unedited” excess content she was able to view directly contributed to her being diagnosed with anxiety and depression and being admitted to a psychiatric ward at the age of 15.
“There’s definitely a clear connection to me,” he said. “It was like access to a free hill and it was a huge accelerator because it introduced me to dangerous and sinister concepts that I didn’t know about before.”
Hannah Hunt, 27, also says she was drawn into a world full of extreme and dangerous content through social media as a teenager. The young woman, who was diagnosed with anorexia at the age of 14, believes that “pro-ana” and “thinspo” diets fuel her restrictive thoughts and behaviors.
“I started the accounts just to talk to my friends, but pretty soon my feed became a pretty toxic place,” she said. Independent. “I was presented with images of thin women and saw people sharing their weight loss tops and encouraging each other.
“This is such a formative time in your life, and your brain can be so affected. I encountered this barrage of content, crashing, eating disorder fueling, that was so damaging at that age.”
He added: “This was a plan for self-destruction.”
Ms Hunt was hospitalized for treatment at the age of 16 and said she had to make significant efforts to stop using the platforms during her recovery.
Both women said they believe the problem is even worse for today’s young people. “If you go to one slightly malicious post, it becomes your entire feed,” Ms. Yates said. “I think this is actually more dangerous now than it was ten years ago.”
“Algorithms work even faster now,” Ms Hunt added. “They figured out how to make their money, and that’s by keeping people online.”
But they agreed that a social media ban was not the right way to solve the problem. “Social media is not inherently bad,” Ms Hunt said.
“It can be a place for similar connection and community, especially for marginalized groups like queer communities. The internet is really important for us to stay connected, but only if it’s built in a way that serves young people and serves us.”
He added that the harms of social media are “don’t disappear at 16” and that the onus should be on the platforms to change “harmful” practices instead.
Ms Yates said she believed the government’s consultation was “positive” but the results should take platforms rather than users into account.
This comes as Meta faces legal action in the US, accused of deliberately inducing addiction and harming children through its platforms. The case, which is closely followed all over the world, is seen as an important case that, if successful, could open the door to similar cases.
Meta has been contacted for comment.
If you are experiencing distressed emotions or having difficulty coping, you can talk or email the Samaritans confidentially on 116 123 (UK and ROI). jo@samaritans.orgor visit Samaritans If you are a US resident and you or someone you know needs mental health help right now, call or text 988 or visit: 988lifeline.org To access online chat on the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. This is a free, confidential crisis helpline available to anyone 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
