Educators Fight for Mental Health

Seattle schools sue social media companies amidst a teen mental health crisis

Seattle Public Schools have recently sued prominent tech companies like Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat for allegedly contributing to what the United States Attorney General considers a “devastating” mental health crisis. In their 91-page lawsuit, educators and administrative officials argue that social media apps are dangerous, profit-driven products that are negatively impacting students inside and outside of the classroom. 

Complicating the situation is the fact that social media is a relatively new social phenomenon; the first site was created only 25 years ago. This means that Gen Z is the first generation to grow up with something like this, which presents unique challenges with solutions that can’t accommodate such fast social media growth.

 According to a report by the non-profit research organization Common Sense Media, on average, high school-aged kids use screens eight hours and 39 minutes per day. A key argument from the Seattle lawsuit is that the more time kids spend on screens, the less sleep they get, and become even more likely to be diagnosed with depression and/or anxiety.

“Tiktok [is damaging to mental health] because people spend too much time staring at their screens,” sophomore Callie Morzy said.

Greendale students also see Instagram as having an especially damaging impact on mental health by representing unrealistic standards as a reality. “It can make it seem as though in order to be happy, you need to have a lot of friends, a perfect life, and you always need to be doing something exciting,” senior Kate Grunske said. 

While legal experts are divided as to how they think the trial will play out, it seems that educators and students alike believe social media is harmful to teenagers.

“I feel that people my age can sometimes feel trapped by social media,” Gruske said.