LGBTQIA+ advocates and local youth are wary of a new plan released by the federal government. The proposal would effectively ban the social media platforms that millions of queer and trans folks rely on to find community and support. Young people such as Abbie Jane, a 16-year-old from Broken Hill can’t afford to see your decision cut them off from these life-giving ties. It’s not just resources they’re worried about losing.
Abbie Jane Queer, 15, received extreme homophobia at her school. In reaction, she started the Rainbow Shoelace Project on social media. This local pride initiative gave out pride-colored shoelace beads to community members. Most importantly, it helped her forge a sense of community in her Victorian hometown, located more than 500 kilometers from the closest capital city. Abbie Jane is scared of this future TikTok ban on multiple levels. She’s afraid because it would cut off her connection to the online spaces that have been so crucial to her health and safety.
Fifteen-year-old Kelsey Van der Woude is well aware that, come December, her social media accounts will be disabled. She worries this will just increase her community’s isolation. Kelsey wears her LGBTIQA+ pride with no shame, as a proud member of the community. She’s concerned that being both autistic and queer might put her at greater risk of bullying. She stated, “I will definitely be a little more screwed when the social media ban happens, bullying-wise, because I’m autistic and queer. So, I’m a bit of a target.”
The consequences of this ban don’t just impact each particular person’s experience. It impacts the larger LGBTQIA+ community.
The Importance of Online Connections
A survey conducted by Minus18 revealed that an overwhelming 91% of queer youth reported finding friends through social media platforms. These online networks often serve as lifelines for marginalized groups, providing crucial support and fostering community among those who may feel isolated in their daily lives.
Varo Lee, CEO of the SA Rainbow Advocacy Alliance, emphasized this point, stating, “There’s a bit of a tension between preventing us from harm but also preventing us from finding community.” The proposed ban threatens to sever access to these vital connections just as many young people are striving to express their identities and seek support.
In her performance piece “Sorry, Not Sorry,” Abbie Jane reiterated these sentiments, emphasizing that online spaces have the power to save lives. She remarked, “[Social media] has taken many lives … but I almost lost my life because of what I was going through in real life, so I wish they took more consideration into that.” This demonstrates a growing need for safe spaces in which people can say what they really think and feel without being attacked or exposed for them.
The Call for In-Person Spaces
For advocates like Varo Lee, it’s about making safety the priority. We’ve illuminated the unintended consequences of social media bans for mental health, particularly for LGBTQIA+ youth, and the need to approach their use with caution. “LGBTIQA+ young people have higher rates of poor mental health and higher rates of suicide, so it’s a population that will need, and does need, and historically needs to reach out to these services,” Lee explained.
The purging of trans and queer life from offline spaces only makes the loss of online communities more dire. Lee pointed out that there is a significant underfunding of such spaces: “We are seeing a real absence of offline, in-person spaces for LGBTIQA+ people to connect in.” Thousands of advocates are asking the federal government to reconsider the ban. In addition, they’re calling on the federal government to fund safe physical spaces where young people can engage with one another.
Joe Ball, the Victorian LGBTIQA+ commissioner, highlighted the need for consultations with young people and support services to identify potential solutions. “We now need to turn to the consultations with young people and the services that support them to see what can be done,” he stated.
The Future of LGBTQIA+ Youth Support
As conversations about extending the social media ban go on, millions of young people like Ace Long are understandably anxious about their future. As a 16-year-old, and having recently started using they/them pronouns, Ace is agender and lesbian. They emphasize the importance of social media in understanding their identity: “The fact that I was agender and being lesbian … I never really had the words for it until social media.”
It makes real an emerging principle that pejorative bans on social media will have a disproportionate impact on queer and trans youth who are growing up in regional communities. Yet these people usually don’t have access to the favorable environments and resources that big cities can provide. With the government’s consultations reportedly including various groups, advocates urge policymakers to recognize the unique challenges faced by these young people.
