Bill S-210: An Act to restrict young persons’ online access to sexually explicit material.
Many of us are at least a bit addicted to our phones and ergo the internet. This is also true of children and youth who are using the internet for its benefits while increasing their risk of encountering its harms. Parents, teachers, and those familiar with sitting across from a group of kids on the Metro know this intuitively…
What many of us do not know is that parallel to all this scrolling is a significant surge in unrestricted access to pornographic content. Content, that is itself increasingly more violent.
In Canada, the average age of a child first stumbling upon pornography is 9-11 years old.
While parents are primarily responsible for shielding their children from exposure to adult content, their resources and ability to monitor and control potentially harmful content are limited. It is essential and urgent that the Canadian Government moves swiftly to support families in protecting their children and youth from internet-related harm, including inadvertent and premature exposure to pornography.
As a proud and committed member of our church and as VP of Children and Youth with the National Council of Canada, I am grateful for the support Bishop Mary and the Diocese have shown by signing our Open Letter in support of Bill S210. The bill calls for the government to implement ‘age verification strategies’ to help protect children from inadvertently and prematurely accessing adult content on the internet.
In sharing this, I encourage parishes and any and all members in your respective communities to review the letter and join in this important effort by encouraging other organizations, businesses, faith and social community groups to sign on. Please note that an online petition for individuals is in the works!
Three Heritage Ministers and three years of promises for action has not led to protection. Yes, it is complicated, but we need to move forward on a Bill that is reaching its final voting point.
Despite support from the opposition parties, it is not clear that what seems a no-brainer will go through. “No-brainer” doesn’t turn up in these articles often….but it is a no-brainer – we protect children in the “real world”, why so slow to follow the directives of the Convention on the Rights of the Child that specifically calls for age verification (notably not to be confused with identity verification)?
Please share this initiative broadly. More information is in the Open Letter itself…please go to www.montreal.anglican.ca/social-justice.
