'Blue Whale Challenge' Suicide Game Latest News: Parents Urged to Take Action Following Teen Deaths
The internet is becoming a more dangerous place, especially with the pressures on the youth that come with social media. Lately, a circulating "Blue Whale Challenge" suicide game has taken the lives of two teens.
15-year-old Isaiah Gonzales was one the victims of this suicide game that has been taking over social media. Gonzales claimed his own life and broadcasted it for the world to see. Jorge Gonzales, the teen's father, said that they discovered Isaiah's lifeless body hanging in a bedroom closet.
"We had no signs at all. Isaiah was Isaiah," Jorge said (via KSAT).
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The "Blue Whalle Challenge" targets teenagers and involves game administrators called "curators." Teens use certain hashtags in order to get in contact with these curators, who then give them daily tasks to accomplish. These tasks may be harmless, though some are dangerous and life-threatening. Teens do this for 50 days and are told to take their own lives at the end.
Parents are encouraged to reach out to their children and monitor their activity on social media. Some platforms, like Instagram, have already taken certain measures in order to prevent the "Blue Whale Challenge" from proliferating.
"I want them to go through their phones, look at their social media. If they're on that challenge already, they can catch that from happening," Jorge said.
Kim Estes of Savvy Parents Safe Kids encourages parents to approach their kids and talk to them. However, it should be done in a manner that will not scare their children away or cause them to hide these issues.
"In this age of likes and followers, kids are a lot more vulnerable to following these challenges because they want to be on that social media cutting edge with their friends and fans and followers," Estes said (via Q13 FOX).
It is unknown where or how the "Blue Whale Challenge" started, though some believe that it stems from outside the United States.
