I recently decided to delete all the pictures of my family that I could, off of social media. We put our kids on social media before they are even born. There little faces are plastered all over the internet from the moment we get our first ultrasound pictures. Does this generation get a chance to make there own decision of whether or not they want to be on social media? My generation did not experience social media until we were at an age to make the decision for ourselves. There are many days I regret ever starting an account. It adds so much drama and stress. It alters our perceptions of others and creates unreachable expectations.
We tell children they can’t have an account until a certain age even though they’ve been on there since birth or before. What will the effects of growing up online be on our children? Do we think about that? Do we think about whether they deserve the chance to have privacy growing up? How much is too much? I’ve seen posts of family events, kids in the hospital, bathtubs, nude,… you name it. We laugh at videos of children having meltdowns or tantrums. Why film that? Do you want to look back at yourself in a painful or vulnerable moment and share it with everyone? What happen to privacy? Can our children trust us with those sensitive moments? Can they rest easy knowing their parents love and respect them enough to keep certain things between just them?
We all know that online predators are lurking everywhere seeking out new prey. Are we putting our kids in danger? We show them what our kids look like, where they live and go to school. We share their favorite foods, best friends, and daily habits. We don’t need to live in constant fear but we do need to be mindful of the dangers.
But even if we choose to limit our child’s exposure, according to social media rules, others are free to post pictures of our children without the parent’s consent. The person who takes the picture is considered the owner of the image. So essentially no one owns their own face. Is that not crazy?! It is our biblical responsibility as parents to protect our children. Why do I not have the ability to delete a picture of my child that was taken and posted without permission from me or my child? What is happening to our rights? What are the effects going to be on our children? I’m choosing to give my children a chance and a choice. I am not here to judge your decisions. I just want to share things for you to consider when deciding to share your life. Maybe we all just need to put more thought into what we share and consider the outcome of those things for the future generations.