BlackYouthMentalHealthinthe
SocialMedia&DigitalEra:WhatToKnow
DigitalplatformsprovideBlackyouthwithspacesforself-expression,community building,andidentityformation.Studiesindicatethattheseonlinecommunitiesfoster positiveidentitydevelopmentandresilience,whichcontributetoimprovedmental healthoutcomes.[1]However,Blackyoutharealsodisproportionatelyexposedtoonline racialharassment,hatespeech,andotherformsofdiscriminationthathaveserious
PoliticalLandscape
Overthepastyear,therehasbeenmuchdebateabouttheresponsibilityof socialmediacompaniesinmoderatingexposuretohatespeechandharmful contentontheirsites.Additionally,thereisnoconsensusastowhattheroleof governmentshouldbeinregulatingsocialmediacompanies.InJuly2024,the SupremeCourtruledthatFloridaandTexascouldnotcontroltechcompanies' decisionsonhowtomoderatetheircontentasitisaformofeditorialjudgment protectedundertheFirstAmendment.However,onthefirstdayofhis presidency,DonaldTrumpsignedanexecutiveorderrollingbackprevious federalcommitmentstomanagehatespeech,“misinformation,”and “disinformation”ononlineplatforms.Inthemeantime,severalstateshave takenonthisissuethemselves.Forexample,NorthCarolina,Arkansas, Louisiana,Texas,andTennesseehaveallenactedlegislationthatrequires parentalconsentandageverificationforsocialmediausersunder18. Other states,includingSouthCarolina,Georgia,andMinnesota,arefollowingsuitwith legislationpending.Goingforward,theevolvingpoliticallandscapewillplaya crucialroleinshapinghowplatformsbalanceuserprotectionswithFirst Amendmentrights,ultimatelyinfluencingthedigitalexperiencesofyoung people.
WhattoKnow
1.Blackyouthareconsistentlyamongthemostactiveusersofsocialmedia platforms.
Accordingtoa2023PewCenterResearchsurvey,Blackteensreporthigher usageratesofplatformslikeTikTok(80%)andInstagram(69%)comparedto theirWhiteandHispanicpeers.Theyarealsomorelikelytoengagewiththese platformsfrequently.Twenty-eightpercentofBlackteensreportusingTikTok “almostconstantly,”comparedtojust8%ofWhiteteens.Withsuchhigh engagementonsocialmedia,Blackyouthhavehadanundeniableimpacton socialmedia,leveragingittoshapeculturalnarrativesandbuildsocial movements.MovementslikeBlackLivesMatterandcelebratoryhashtags suchas#BlackGirlMagicexemplifyhowyoungBlackpeoplehaveusedsocial mediatomakematerialandsymbolicchange.Blackyouthcontinuetothriveas creators,buildingsocialmediafollowingsoutsideoftraditionalmediaplatforms andcreatingonlinecommunitiestosharetheiruniqueperspectives.
Conclusion
OnlinehatespeechnotonlyunderminesthementalhealthofBlackyouth butalsoperpetuatessystemicinequitiesthatlimittheiropportunitiesfor advancement.ByprioritizingBlackmentalhealthinthesocialmediaand digitalera,wecanreducetheharminflicteduponvulnerablecommunities, improvementalhealthoutcomes,andensurethatBlackyouthcanengagein digitalspacessafely.Actingnowwillproviderelieftocountlessindividualsand contributetolong-termimprovementsinmentalhealthandhealthequityfor futuregenerations.Supportingmentalhealthindigitalspacesoffershopefor afuturewhereallyouth,regardlessofrace,canthrivebothonlineandoffline.
References
[1]Tynes,B.M.,English,D.,DelToro,J.,Smith,N.A.,Lozada,F.T.,&Williams,D.R.(2020).Trajectoriesofonlineracial discriminationandpsychologicalfunctioningamongAfricanAmericanandLatinoadolescents Child development,91(5),1577-1593.
[2]English,D,Lambert,S F,Tynes,B M,Bowleg,L,Zea,M C,&Howard,L C (2020) Dailymultidimensionalracial discriminationamongBlackUSAmericanadolescents.JournalofAppliedDevelopmentalPsychology,66,101068.
[3]Miller,G H,Marquez-Velarde,G,Williams,A A,&Keith,V M (2020) DiscriminationandBlackSocialMedia Use:SitesofOppressionandExpression SociologyofRaceandEthnicity,7(2),247-263https://doi.org/10.1177/2332649220948179
[4]Tynes,B M,Seaton,E,&Zuckerman,A (2015) Onlineracialdiscrimination:Agrowingproblemfor adolescents.Psychologicalscienceagenda.
[5]Bravo,DY,Jefferies,J,Epps,A,Hill,NE (2019) WhenThingsGoViral:Youth’sDiscriminationExposureinthe WorldofSocialMedia.In:Fitzgerald,H.E.,Johnson,D.J.,Qin,D.B.,Villarruel,F.A.,Norder,J.(eds)Handbookof ChildrenandPrejudice.Springer,Cham.https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-12228-7 15