Latest news with #LGBTQI
The Advertiser
13 hours ago
- Health
- The Advertiser
Fears for vulnerable children as social media ban grows
Limiting children's access to social media could inadvertently harm marginalised children, an expert has warned, as YouTube is roped into Australia's ban. The federal government's decision to include the video-sharing platform in its social media ban for under-16s has renewed focus on the measure. While it has been broadly celebrated by the coalition and Labor, who say it will protect children from the harms of social media, youth mental health foundation Headspace disagrees. "This is seen as a solution and it may be helpful, we don't know. But it may cause harm as well," national clinical advisor Simon Dodd told AAP. "We've talked to young people and they value social media. They value the connections it gives them." This was particularly true for those who struggled to find physical community in parts of regional or rural Australia, and for LGBTQI youth, who use social media platforms to find support and stay safe, Mr Dodd said. Mental health is complicated as there are many factors that can impact it, including a person's social environment, and focusing on one measure as a solution risks missing opportunities to address young people's challenges . From December, people under 16 will no longer be able to create accounts on social media platforms such as Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook ,TikTok and now YouTube. Platforms that fail to conform with these rules face fines of up to $49.5 million. Eating disorder not-for-profit Hide N Seek warned YouTube could be home to harmful content such as extreme videos about body transformations or "what I eat in a day" media. "It can be extremely damaging, extremely damaging for children who are still developing their sense of self," founder Jaimee Krawitz told AAP. "But YouTube also hosts supportive, recovery-focused communities and educational content that can be part of a young person's healing journey." The changes will still allow children to access YouTube Kids or view videos accessible without an account. Though he recognised regulation was part of the answer to making online spaces safer, Mr Dodd has also urged the government to centre on young people's voices. "They have consistently told us they get the complexities of the social media environment and understand it better than many of the adults who are trying to legislate something that is difficult to manage," he said. "Without genuine consultation, this will result in young people feeling less trust in government and that is a real worry." Limiting children's access to social media could inadvertently harm marginalised children, an expert has warned, as YouTube is roped into Australia's ban. The federal government's decision to include the video-sharing platform in its social media ban for under-16s has renewed focus on the measure. While it has been broadly celebrated by the coalition and Labor, who say it will protect children from the harms of social media, youth mental health foundation Headspace disagrees. "This is seen as a solution and it may be helpful, we don't know. But it may cause harm as well," national clinical advisor Simon Dodd told AAP. "We've talked to young people and they value social media. They value the connections it gives them." This was particularly true for those who struggled to find physical community in parts of regional or rural Australia, and for LGBTQI youth, who use social media platforms to find support and stay safe, Mr Dodd said. Mental health is complicated as there are many factors that can impact it, including a person's social environment, and focusing on one measure as a solution risks missing opportunities to address young people's challenges . From December, people under 16 will no longer be able to create accounts on social media platforms such as Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook ,TikTok and now YouTube. Platforms that fail to conform with these rules face fines of up to $49.5 million. Eating disorder not-for-profit Hide N Seek warned YouTube could be home to harmful content such as extreme videos about body transformations or "what I eat in a day" media. "It can be extremely damaging, extremely damaging for children who are still developing their sense of self," founder Jaimee Krawitz told AAP. "But YouTube also hosts supportive, recovery-focused communities and educational content that can be part of a young person's healing journey." The changes will still allow children to access YouTube Kids or view videos accessible without an account. Though he recognised regulation was part of the answer to making online spaces safer, Mr Dodd has also urged the government to centre on young people's voices. "They have consistently told us they get the complexities of the social media environment and understand it better than many of the adults who are trying to legislate something that is difficult to manage," he said. "Without genuine consultation, this will result in young people feeling less trust in government and that is a real worry." Limiting children's access to social media could inadvertently harm marginalised children, an expert has warned, as YouTube is roped into Australia's ban. The federal government's decision to include the video-sharing platform in its social media ban for under-16s has renewed focus on the measure. While it has been broadly celebrated by the coalition and Labor, who say it will protect children from the harms of social media, youth mental health foundation Headspace disagrees. "This is seen as a solution and it may be helpful, we don't know. But it may cause harm as well," national clinical advisor Simon Dodd told AAP. "We've talked to young people and they value social media. They value the connections it gives them." This was particularly true for those who struggled to find physical community in parts of regional or rural Australia, and for LGBTQI youth, who use social media platforms to find support and stay safe, Mr Dodd said. Mental health is complicated as there are many factors that can impact it, including a person's social environment, and focusing on one measure as a solution risks missing opportunities to address young people's challenges . From December, people under 16 will no longer be able to create accounts on social media platforms such as Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook ,TikTok and now YouTube. Platforms that fail to conform with these rules face fines of up to $49.5 million. Eating disorder not-for-profit Hide N Seek warned YouTube could be home to harmful content such as extreme videos about body transformations or "what I eat in a day" media. "It can be extremely damaging, extremely damaging for children who are still developing their sense of self," founder Jaimee Krawitz told AAP. "But YouTube also hosts supportive, recovery-focused communities and educational content that can be part of a young person's healing journey." The changes will still allow children to access YouTube Kids or view videos accessible without an account. Though he recognised regulation was part of the answer to making online spaces safer, Mr Dodd has also urged the government to centre on young people's voices. "They have consistently told us they get the complexities of the social media environment and understand it better than many of the adults who are trying to legislate something that is difficult to manage," he said. "Without genuine consultation, this will result in young people feeling less trust in government and that is a real worry." Limiting children's access to social media could inadvertently harm marginalised children, an expert has warned, as YouTube is roped into Australia's ban. The federal government's decision to include the video-sharing platform in its social media ban for under-16s has renewed focus on the measure. While it has been broadly celebrated by the coalition and Labor, who say it will protect children from the harms of social media, youth mental health foundation Headspace disagrees. "This is seen as a solution and it may be helpful, we don't know. But it may cause harm as well," national clinical advisor Simon Dodd told AAP. "We've talked to young people and they value social media. They value the connections it gives them." This was particularly true for those who struggled to find physical community in parts of regional or rural Australia, and for LGBTQI youth, who use social media platforms to find support and stay safe, Mr Dodd said. Mental health is complicated as there are many factors that can impact it, including a person's social environment, and focusing on one measure as a solution risks missing opportunities to address young people's challenges . From December, people under 16 will no longer be able to create accounts on social media platforms such as Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook ,TikTok and now YouTube. Platforms that fail to conform with these rules face fines of up to $49.5 million. Eating disorder not-for-profit Hide N Seek warned YouTube could be home to harmful content such as extreme videos about body transformations or "what I eat in a day" media. "It can be extremely damaging, extremely damaging for children who are still developing their sense of self," founder Jaimee Krawitz told AAP. "But YouTube also hosts supportive, recovery-focused communities and educational content that can be part of a young person's healing journey." The changes will still allow children to access YouTube Kids or view videos accessible without an account. Though he recognised regulation was part of the answer to making online spaces safer, Mr Dodd has also urged the government to centre on young people's voices. "They have consistently told us they get the complexities of the social media environment and understand it better than many of the adults who are trying to legislate something that is difficult to manage," he said. "Without genuine consultation, this will result in young people feeling less trust in government and that is a real worry."
Perth Now
15 hours ago
- Health
- Perth Now
Fears for vulnerable children as social media ban grows
Limiting children's access to social media could inadvertently harm marginalised children, an expert has warned, as YouTube is roped into Australia's ban. The federal government's decision to include the video-sharing platform in its social media ban for under-16s has renewed focus on the measure. While it has been broadly celebrated by the coalition and Labor, who say it will protect children from the harms of social media, youth mental health foundation Headspace disagrees. "This is seen as a solution and it may be helpful, we don't know. But it may cause harm as well," national clinical advisor Simon Dodd told AAP. "We've talked to young people and they value social media. They value the connections it gives them." This was particularly true for those who struggled to find physical community in parts of regional or rural Australia, and for LGBTQI youth, who use social media platforms to find support and stay safe, Mr Dodd said. Mental health is complicated as there are many factors that can impact it, including a person's social environment, and focusing on one measure as a solution risks missing opportunities to address young people's challenges . From December, people under 16 will no longer be able to create accounts on social media platforms such as Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook ,TikTok and now YouTube. Platforms that fail to conform with these rules face fines of up to $49.5 million. Eating disorder not-for-profit Hide N Seek warned YouTube could be home to harmful content such as extreme videos about body transformations or "what I eat in a day" media. "It can be extremely damaging, extremely damaging for children who are still developing their sense of self," founder Jaimee Krawitz told AAP. "But YouTube also hosts supportive, recovery-focused communities and educational content that can be part of a young person's healing journey." The changes will still allow children to access YouTube Kids or view videos accessible without an account. Though he recognised regulation was part of the answer to making online spaces safer, Mr Dodd has also urged the government to centre on young people's voices. "They have consistently told us they get the complexities of the social media environment and understand it better than many of the adults who are trying to legislate something that is difficult to manage," he said. "Without genuine consultation, this will result in young people feeling less trust in government and that is a real worry."
Time of India
a day ago
- Politics
- Time of India
780 human right violations pending in Telangana: NHRC
Hyderabad: As many as 780 cases of human rights violations are pending in Telangana, including four police custodial deaths and 30 judicial custodial deaths, according to the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC). These cases are among more than 35,000 pending across the country. During an open hearing and camp in the city, the NHRC chairperson, Justice V Ramasubramanian, passed appropriate directions after hearing109 cases of human rights violations in the state. Following the intervention of the NHRC in one case of caste-based harassment and a social boycott in a village in the Khammam district, the police took actionand ensured that the villagers refrained from engaging in caste-based discrimination or enforcing a social boycott against the family. You Can Also Check: Hyderabad AQI | Weather in Hyderabad | Bank Holidays in Hyderabad | Public Holidays in Hyderabad In another case, involving the deaths of around 48 students and 886 incidents of food poisoning at Gurukul schools in Telangana, the commission directed the secretaries of all five Gurukul schools to submit a report within four weeks. In another case involving the wrongful arrest and lathi charge by police, the NHRC directed the state govt to submit all relevant documents, including environmental clearance and consent to establish the plant. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Is this legal? Access all TV channels without a subscription! Techno Mag Learn More Undo Issues like crimes against women and children, man-animal conflict leading to deaths in many districts of Telangana, a large number of children suffering from malnutrition, problems faced by the SC Corporation, the lack of primary govt schools, the plight of farmers, including those engaged in fish seed production, and the rights of the LGBTQI community were discussed in the 2-day open hearing, which concluded on Tuesday. The officers were instructed to submit reports detailing the actions taken in response to various advisories issued by the commission on issues such as mental health, bonded labour, and the Right to Food & Safety. They were asked to ensure the timely submission of these reports to the commission to ensure justice for victims of human rights violations. It was also emphasised that compliance reports on the commission's recommendations should be submitted as a priority. The chief secretary assured full compliance.
News.com.au
3 days ago
- Politics
- News.com.au
‘Disrespectful and derogatory': GP suspended for social media posts about abortion, gender and Covid
A conservative Christian GP has been found guilty of professional misconduct after complaints were raised over more than a decade worth of his 'offensive' social media posts about abortion, the LGBTQI+ community and Covid. Lawyers for Dr Jereth Kok have blasted Tuesday's ruling by the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT), saying it represents a 'deeply concerning shift in regulatory scope over personal speech'. One post that landed Dr Kok in hot water was a satirical article by conservative Christian US website Babylon Bee titled 'Instead Of Traditional Warfare, Chinese Military Will Now Be Trained To Shout Wrong Pronouns At American Troops'. Instead Of Traditional Warfare, Chinese Military Will Now Be Trained To Shout Wrong Pronouns At American Troops â€' The Babylon Bee (@TheBabylonBee) March 20, 2021 VCAT found the post, re-shared by Dr Kok, was 'inconsistent' with the Medical Board's Code of Conduct as it 'failed to respect and be sensitive to gender diversity'. 'The Tribunal is comfortably satisfied that the post was denigrating, demeaning, disrespectful and derogatory to LGBTQI+ community as it trivialised reference to the identity issues of some in the LGBTQI+ community,' VCAT said in its decision. Dr Kok told the tribunal that he believed 'that the Bible very clearly teaches that homosexual conduct, which includes same-sex sexual activity and relationships, is immoral' and that 'the Bible obliges Christian believers to refrain from all immoral conduct, including homosexual conduct'. 'I have provided care to many gay and lesbian patients without ever disclosing my personal views to them,' he said in his witness statement. 'This was no more difficult for me than providing non-judgmental care to heterosexual patients having extramarital affairs (which I personally disapprove of) or even convicted criminals.' In other posts Dr Kok railed against abortion, describing it as the 'massacres of babies' and 'baby killing' and referring to medical practitioners who engage in the practice as 'butchers' and 'serial contract killers'. Dr Kok told the tribunal that as a Christian 'I believe that life and personhood begin at conception' and 'I abhor the way our society conceals the truth about abortion by using deceitful euphemisms'. VCAT upheld complaints against a number of the posts, finding that they denigrated, demeaned and slurred medical practitioners who provide abortion treatment to patients. The tribunal found Dr Kok had similarly demeaned doctors who 'recognise that people who identify as transgender are not suffering from a mental health condition'. In various posts on the topic of gender dysphoria, Dr Kok had described transgender surgery as 'medical butchery' and 'mutilation of genitals' and labelled doctors who performed the procedures as 'crooks'. Dr Kok, who previously practised at a clinic in Melbourne's outer suburbs, was suspended by the Medical Board of Australia in August 2019 after anonymous complaints were raised about his social media activity dating back to 2010. More than six years on, VCAT last week upheld Dr Kok's suspension, finding 54 of the 85 offending posts amounted to misconduct under the Health Practitioner National Law (Victoria) Act 2009. VCAT found Dr Kok had also 'expressed sentiments of violence and made derogatory statements' towards racial and religious groups, despite acknowledging that a number may have been 'meant by Dr Kok in some sort of humorous way'. In a number of inflammatory posts — which Dr Kok insisted were satirical or sarcastic in nature — he called for the colonisation of 'primitive yellow people and black people' and described Chinese people as 'ching chongs'. 'It's time that those primitive yellow people and black people progressed,' Dr Kok wrote in one post, which came in response to the 2015 Obergefell decision in the US legalising same-sex marriage. 'If they won't do it by themselves, we ought to colonise them, that we might educate them in equality, social justice and human rights.' In another post, Dr Kok replied to a friend who had joked about 'ordering some Zyklon B from Amazon' and 'inviting the inferior races over' for a shower with the hashtag '#illridewithyou'. Dr Kok told the tribunal the post was in the context of the December 2017 terror attack in Melbourne and 'specifically, [the fact that] anybody who expresses concern about religious inspired terrorism will be labelled a 'Nazi''. VCAT also found Dr Kok 'denigrated, demeaned and slurred persons that accepted and considered it right to follow Covid-19 public health orders' and 'in relation to Covid-19, drew on and legitimised anti-vaccination and vaccine hesitancy rhetoric and contained misleading information regarding vaccines'. Dr Kok had railed against 'authoritarian' lockdown measures and likened taking the Covid vaccine to playing 'Russian roulette', among other similar comments. 'Some posts provide information about important health matters, but the information is not balanced or unbiased and does not show an understanding of public health principles including for health promotion, disease prevention and control,' VCAT found. The Human Rights Law Alliance (HRLA), which represented Dr Kok, said the tribunal gave little weight to constitutional or freedom-of-speech protections despite the 'political, religious and satirical nature' of the posts. HRLA added that the decision 'sets a concerning precedent for freedom of speech in Australia, particularly for professionals who hold Christian or conservative beliefs'. 'Dr Kok is disappointed that he was unsuccessful with his submissions to the Tribunal that free speech principles should be upheld and that Medical Board discipline should relate to clinical conduct and should not police religious and political expression,' HRLA said in a statement to on behalf of Dr Kok. 'Dr Kok of course respects the Tribunal's decision and is taking advice on the decision and will now turn to preparing for the sanction hearing that will follow these findings.' HRLA noted the case 'did not relate to his medical practice, as the Tribunal acknowledged'. 'Dr Kok accepts that some of the language he used in his social media posts was regrettable and on reflection he would not use that language again,' the statement said. 'He notes that this relates to only a proportion of the posts that were impugned by the Medical Board and that he communicated this acceptance to the Tribunal at his hearing.' Dr Kok was 'heartened that the Tribunal found that the Medical Board's allegations of misconduct were not satisfied for over one third of the social media posts subject to allegations', HRLA added. 'Many of the posts were found to be purely political or religious commentary and so fell outside the Medical Board's remit. Dr Kok was also pleased that the worst allegations suggesting that he supported genocide and violence were not made out and that the Tribunal recognised that many comments used satire and sarcasm.' Christian political party Family First on Monday condemned the ruling, describing it as a 'gross injustice and a chilling attack on freedom of speech'. Family First said it would fight to repeal 'similar anti-free speech laws' in all states and would field candidates at upcoming elections in South Australia, Victoria and NSW. 'Dr Kok has harmed no patient. His only 'crime' was to express his views online — many of them satirical or Christian in nature — and for that, he has been punished with the loss of his medical career,' Family First national director Lyle Shelton said in a statement. 'This is not justice, it is un-Australian. This is Victoria's 'ministry of truth' enforcing ideological conformity and crushing dissent.'
eNCA
5 days ago
- Politics
- eNCA
'Make America Gay Again': Amsterdam pride gets political
Thousands of people gathered for Amsterdam Pride march on Saturday in a festive and political mood, stressing the need to defend LGBTQI+ rights increasingly under threat around the world. Organised by the Pride Amsterdam foundation, the march kicked off a week of festivities in the Dutch capital, which culminates next weekend in a huge parade on the city's famous canals. "We have an amazing pride, because it's on the canals, it's very unique, so it's very famous," said Ben Thomas from Amsterdam, current holder of the title Mister Bear 2024, awarded to men with luxuriant facial hair. "People are not so aware about the march, because it has turned into too much of a party and does not so much focus on why we do it," added the 44-year-old, who teaches young refugees. "We're not just here to party, but we're here to be equal citizens. We're here for our rights!" Decked out in dashing and brightly coloured clothes, the demonstrators marched through the city centre in festive mood, brandishing rainbows or banners reading "Make America Gay Again" or "Protect the Dolls" -- a reference to the rights of transgender women. "It's important to be here, to show up. With all the stuff that's going on in the world, it's getting really scary, especially in America," said Dani van Duin, a 44-year-old IT specialist who identifies as a lesbian woman. Since his return to power, US President Donald Trump has rolled back many rights enjoyed by transgender people. But the situation is also becoming less comfortable even in the Netherlands, said Van Duin. "People are just repeating hate speech from the right wing, and they don't think anymore," she told AFP. Lina van Dinther, a 21-year-old student, came to march with two friends and celebrate her transgender identity. "And also to hopefully improve the transgender situation in the Netherlands," she added, draped in a blue, pink, and white flag that represents her community. ANP/AFP | Ramon van Flymen The young woman said the waiting list for a clinic offering transition surgery can be as much as six years. "It's a pressing issue that needs to be addressed," she told AFP. At the end of the march, in Amsterdam's leafy Vondelpark, Frederique Emmerig, dressed in a summery dress, looks around her in wonder. "In my city, I feel like I'm the only one. It's very lonely." Pride marches are organised in many global cities around the world, linked to the Stonewall riots which erupted in New York in June 1969, the founding mobilisation of the LGBTQI+ movement. By Stéphanie Hamel
