MONDAY MOTIVATION: Delete the Digital Drama From Your Life

Have you ever had to pause and take a moment of silence (to calm yourself) after reading someone's Facebook comment or Twitter status? Or maybe you had to delete their comment all together from one of your social media accounts? Well, digital drama and cyber bullying have become an all too real occurrence these days with the continually growing popularity of blogs and social media. People have used online to express rude or hateful comments that they would most likely never say to you in person as they hide behind their send buttons. In these cases you can either develop a thick skin and ignore the cyber hate or you can find a way to take a (personal or public) stand against it.

12 year old Willow Smith has joined Seventeen Magazine's "Delete the Drama" campaign as a celebrity activist. The campaign seeks to empower young women to disengage from cyberbullying by deleting harsh and mean comments they see on their Twitter, Facebook and Instagram pages.

I've had a few times where I have read negative comments towards me on my social media feeds or noticed hurtful opinions that I was sensitive to. It made me realize how important it is to clear your space (even online) of any negative clutter. Relieve yourself of having any negativity in your digital view or engaging in it.

This week I challenge all of you to clear your digital drama: delete negative people off of your friends lists (it's not about the number of "friends" you have!), follow one less celebrity gossip blog, and/or don't contribute to any negative back and forth in the comment sections of a blog post or social media feed. 

Find ways to protect your spirit from hurtful words and negativity because sometimes the best way to battle negativity is to keep it moving and ignore the hate.

I posted this on my Facebook page and thought I would share this quote again because it is so relevant and a worthy reminder:

"If we understood the power of our thoughts, we would guard them more closely. If we understood the awesome power of our words, we would prefer silence to almost anything negative. In our thoughts and words we create our own weaknesses and our own strengths. Our limitations and joys begin in our hearts. We can always replace negative with positive"

- Betty Eadie.

Have you experienced any digital hate? What do you do when people say hurtful things to you online via social media?

Happy Monday!

Autistic Boy Bullied by his Teacher...smh!

Imagine being a child going to school everyday with teachers that bully you.  No, no, you read it right,  TEACHERS that bully you.  That is what one 10 year old autistic New Jersey boy dealt with seemingly silently until his father placed a recording device in his pocket.

Dad, Stuart Chiafetz, claims he did that in order to find out why the school had reported that his son was acting out and hitting teachers.  

He found way more than he bargained for.  He listened to over six hours of recordings of teachers and teacher aides apparently talking about alcohol and sex in front of the class and yelling at his son telling him to 'shut your mouth'

In the recording you can hear Akian ask about seeing his dad. It appears that his parents have joint custody and he sees his mom for a period of time and then his dad for another.  And naturally, there is an adjustment period that he would have to go through where he needs a little more reassuring than others. He asks his teachers if he is going to 'see Dad after mom' and the teacher says 'no' asks him about library books then call him a 'bastard' after he begins to cry.

These are the people who are supposed to protect, nurture and teach our children?

The board of education did step in immediately after receiving a copy of the 6 hour recording and the teachers have apparently been disciplined, but is that enough?

Now, I'm not saying, by any means, that every time a child does something that seems out of character it's the school or teachers fault (because lets face it, some of Bebe's kids are still running around haha) but as parents you should stand up for your kids.  Looking around it seems as though parents are (generally) less involved nowadays as the pressures and demands of making a living have become greater.  

It troubles me know that had Akian's dad not stepped in, he probably would have been labelled as another 'problematic autistic boy' and his story would turn out very different.

Stuart's YouTube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tfkscHt96R0

read more: http://blackandmarriedwithkids.com/2012/04/nj-dad-exposes-teachers-after-placing-a-recording-device-on-his-autistic-son/

Pariah releases in select US theaters today

Pariah, for those who don't know, is a movie that follows a 17-year-old African-American lesbian, as she struggles with how to live with who she knows she is.

Pariah generated a lot of buzz at this year's Sundance Film Festival and opens in select US theaters today.

This film perfectly timed as more and more young gay people are committing suicide each day because they do not feel accepted in today's society. Hopefully this movie will continue to raise awareness and start dialogues among families and save some lives.

To my US fans and friends, check your local listings and check it out if you can.

For more info please visit their website: http://focusfeatures.com/focusfeatures/film/pariah/