Devendra Kumar
Esther Ghey, the devastated mother of 17-year-old Brianna Ghey, is passionately expressing her anguish at the “horrendous” trans hate her daughter faced online. The online abuse and harassment not only worsened Brianna’s mental health struggles but also led to her brutal murder. Ghey is horrified that social media companies like X, formerly Twitter, refused to take down a comment about her daughter, citing that it didn’t breach their policies. She is convinced that these companies have a moral responsibility to safeguard young people from harm online.
Ghey’s daughter struggled with her mental health and had access to eating-disorder and self-harm content on the platform, which significantly worsened her condition. Brianna was also a victim of online bullying, which had a profound impact on her well-being. Ghey is desperate to ensure that other young people don’t suffer a similar fate and is determined to make a difference. She plans to share her experiences with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to discuss online safety for young people and her Peace in Mind campaign, which aims to train more teachers in mindfulness.
Ghey is not only grieving but also deeply concerned about the impact of social media on young people. She is worried about the ease with which her daughter’s murderer accessed violent content on the dark web, and she is critical of the lack of regulation and the profitability of social media companies. Ghey believes that the Online Safety Act falls short and that social media companies are not doing enough to protect young people.
Despite her immense grief, Ghey has found strength in building her daughter’s legacy and is resolute in using her daughter’s tragedy to make a positive difference. Her campaign has raised £75,000 to train teachers in mindfulness, and she hopes to spread the campaign nationwide. Ghey has also met with other parents who have lost children to social media-related harm, including the father of Molly Russell, who took her own life after viewing harmful material online.