There is a new law proposed in Italy that would make it illegal to post pro posts for anorexia or bulimia.
This makes a lot of since. Individuals who are making these posts are suffering from a mental health issue that puts their physical body in harm. The surefire way to stop this is to make them pay a fine or put them in jail.
This will teach these young girls and young men with body image issues to love themselves for who they are, and will stop them from influencing other young girls and other young men. I totally see the logic in this solution.
OR
The government could hire social workers and mental health providers to troll those websites. They could offer advise. They could point these kids to sources, both online and in person, where they could get help. They could spread a message that there is not something wrong with you, but this lifestyle is not helpful to your mind or body.
The government could set up more clinics. They could put money into organizations which help children. They could sponsor clinics where these kids could go and recover.
They could build their own websites and support groups.
You know, they could actually really help these kids instead of putting one more obstacle in their course to recovery.
Enough vilifying mental health issues. Admit that there is a problem, figure out how you can help, and help.
But jail time? How will that help anyone?
Laws like this go beyond trying to stop a problem. They increase fear of talking about mental health issues. The increase ignorance of mental health issues. They are created by people who do not understand the crisis that these kids are facing, and do not bother taking the time to make any attempt at understanding.
English News Article
Italian News Article
Italian Blog Criticism
No comments:
Post a Comment