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[quote=Anonymous]
Here’s the thing people might be missing: for a lot of kids, this isn't just another news story. Their world is online. Their influencers, these  debates, their entire sense of what's happening—it's filtered through TikTok, Instagram, and X. And right now, those spaces are flooded with all kinds of hatred.

Algorithms aren't designed to help them grieve or process trauma; they're designed to keep them watching. That can mean pushing them into darker corners, feeding them anger, or drowning them in misinformation. The school wouldn't ignore a fight in the hallway; this is a digital fight happening right in their pockets, and it’s just as disruptive.

The difference between this and other tragedies—as awful as they are—is connection. A school shooting or a crime like what happened to the Hortmans is a horrific event that we all mourn together, but for most students, the victims are strangers to our teens. 
 Charlie Kirk was not a stranger to most teens. For many students, especially those leaning conservative, he wasn’t an abstraction. They didn’t just know his name; they knew his voice. They watched his debates, they followed his content. They had opinions about him. That creates a personal connection—even for those who disagreed with him. His death doesn’t just feel like a tragedy; for some, it feels like an attack on a worldview. It makes them wonder if their own beliefs could make them a target.

That’s why the school’s role isn’t to make a political statement. It’s to be a steady hand. It’s saying: “We know something disturbing and violent happened online. Many of you have seen things that are upsetting and hard to forget. That’s normal. We’re here to talk, and here are people who can help.”

That simple act does something crucial: it pulls them out of the toxic online echo chamber and tells them they’re not alone. It teaches them that the healthy response to something like this isn’t to spiral online or bury it—it’s to talk about it. If we don’t do that, we’re failing them when they need support and acceptance no matter if they lean right or left. [/quote]

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