Redlands mayor Karen Williams has called for elected representatives to take the lead on stamping out online abuse.
The third term mayor said politicians across all levels of government were constantly in the public eye and should be setting a good example for the next generation with their use of social media.
She is calling on politicians to recommit to the Pledge not to Sledge campaign, which was launched in 2018 and is designed to encourage greater respect on social networking sites.
“If we don’t show a level of respect to each other on a daily basis, that sort of behaviour [bullying] becomes normalised and it has an impact on people’s mental health and young people in particular,” Cr Williams said.
The campaign recognises that bullying, violence and hateful behaviour online is a significant social problem affecting people across all sectors of the community and different walks of life.
Social media users are encouraged to display the ‘Pledgenot2sledge’ banner on their page, share the campaign with friends and family or upload a video committing not to sledge.
Redland councillors unanimously endorsed the initiative in 2018. It was rolled out again during the 2020 election campaign.
