Facebook Carnival

In the last few weeks, the media and social media networks, Facebook in particular, reeked of the wrathful video, where an enraged single parent spared not her child and gave her a blessed beating. This social website, Facebook, is modern, “tree of knowledge, good and of evil.” The 12-year old child used Facebook to post the semi-nude photos of her; the mother used Facebook to post (a now viral video) in response to the 12-year old’s behavior and the public soaked in all the information available, to either understand the situation or to keep up with current gossip.

Carnival and Facebook are currently two of our nation’s most electric social platforms. One can, ‘neonize,’ one’s popularity, business sales and notoriousness all on these stages. There are common elements on both mediums; nakedness, revelry and drunkenness.  Locally, for one to obtain 100+ “likes” on a Facebook photo of oneself, what does a person need to purport? In light of the 12-year old’s decision to post semi-nude photos, it would seem nakedness would be among one of the options. The viral video of the beating of the 12-year old, seemed to not directly contain any of these three elements, yet it sparked key discussions on removing corporal punishment and child abuse. Where are the discussions on providing guidance to the youths on the security and privacy issues associated with this social networking site?

The social landscape is littered and laced with sexually based advertisements, movies, billboards,  socialites and celebrities with ‘sex-gained’ fame. Is this situation with the 12-year old nudity far removed from our families or homes? I believe that she is simply a product of our society. “Sex sells,” is the concept being nurtured by almost every stakeholder of our society.  Driving along the highway, it is difficult to ignore the disparity between the type of product being sold and the image of a semi-naked woman being used to advertise it on the billboards.  During the Carnival season, it is fashionable and acceptable to wear the shortest shorts, the skimpiest beaded underwear on the streets and behave in the lewdest manner possible.  Unfaithfulness to marriage is to a certain extent expected. It would therefore seem that from childhood, children are exposed to this atrocious sexual culture and are faced with decisions about their sexuality, at the cusp of their puberty years.

What mechanism is there in place to protect these impressionable minds from such a sexually charged environment? For Carnival Monday and Tuesday, we can increase the police presence on the roads and at the fetes, but is it policing and the fear of imprisonment that will protect young people from such an environment in the online world? Is a good beating really going to transform this 12-year old’s mind on whether posting a semi-nude photo is right or wrong?  The mother’s behavior is not the 21st Century prototype behavior, but it is certainly a reflection of a society that has a sense of morality.

Corporal punishment was removed from the education system many years ago. Has this decision solved the discipline issues encountered in the schools? In recent times there have been; stabbings, a killing and many other forms of violence in the schools that were unheard of in the past.  Would the removal of corporal punishment from the family resolve the issues between parents and children? If corporal punishment is not removed from the home circle, what laws are there in place to protect children from abuse during such, ‘spankings?’ T&T’s culture of discipline in the home and at school has its history in , ‘a good licking.’  Also, in times of slavery, when the behavior was unsavory, it was met with whips and chains. Therefore it is not surprising that in our society today, licks seem to be; the best response to behavioral issues - the reinforcement to leave ill relationships and the ‘drive to achieve’ for dunce children. The thin line between a spanking and abuse needs to be managed in order for discipline and not rebellion to be the end result.

Facebook and Carnival are coping mechanisms for daily life issues. Daily status updates, the emotional philosophical pictures, funny videos and juicy gossip on Facebook, help individuals to handle daily challenges. In today’s world, it is also where some relationships begin, develop and end. I believe a start would be to provide some form of guidance for youths on the ills and implications of social media mismanagement.
Carnival similarly provides the environment for Calypsonians to vent about the country’s relationship between the government and people and share jokes on national issues. It would seem that Ms. Bartlett was using Facebook as a coping mechanism in dealing with the challenge of a pre-teen issue.
So where are we as a people now? Are we so caught up with the diversion of the video of the beating that we have used it as a diversion from the reality that no one seems to have the exact answer for - parenting in the online world in a sexually charged environment, which we have supported indirectly and directly? Are the effects of this issue on the younger generations being considered?
This situation reminds me of a joke I heard recently from a friend. Two cavemen walked up to an injured gentleman, one holding a doctor’s bag and the other clad with an immense sized club on his shoulder-“I’m the doctor,” the caveman holding the doctor’s bag introduced himself, “and this other gentleman is my anesthesiologist.”