The Social Illness

On today’s social media, parents need help.

Clare Morell
The American Conservative

We have a severe public health crisis on our hands. American teenagers are, quite literally, dying because of social media. Teens are more depressed and anxious than ever before. New data from the CDC show that nearly three in five teen girls felt persistent sadness in 2021, and one in three girls seriously considered attempting suicide. Depression, self-harm, suicide attempts, and suicide all have increased sharply among U.S. teens between 2011 and 2019, with similar trends worldwide. This was the same period in which social media use moved from optional to virtually mandatory among teens.

Beyond the youth mental health crisis social media is creating, both the kinds of content circulating on social media and other users on the platforms are very dangerous to children. TikTok and Instagram send teens down rabbit holes of eating disorder, drug, and sexual content. Pornography is everywhere online, and it is not just on Pornhub and other adult sites, but on YouTube, Spotify, Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter, and Snapchat.

Four Legislative Proposals for States to Protect Children from Online Obscenity

by Clare Morell, Adam Candeub, & Hayden Parsons

The effortless availability of pornography in every home in America would have been inconceivable twenty-five years ago.

The States have largely stayed out of the fight against internet pornography. Yet, they have power to regulate obscene and indecent content within their state boundaries. The following provides four legislative proposals:

Brad Littlejohn, in his latest for WORLD Opinions writes: "For now, the 'parental rights' train and the 'public morals' train are still running largely on parallel tracks. But as they begin to diverge, how far will conservative lawmakers be able or willing to go in exercising their own God-given obligations to protect the next generation from moral ruin?"

Andrew Walker writes about the true meaning of loving ones neighbor for Christ All Over.

In his syndicated column, George Weigel celebrates Archbishop Borys Gudziak and Major-Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk for their "powerful global witness to the truths of Catholic faith amidst a moral monster’s genocidal assault on the people of Ukraine."

Nathanael Blake writes for The Federalist about woke attempts to rewrite Roahl Dahl's classic children's books.

"Suffering is not just something to be borne but is tied to hope"—at The Catholic Thing, Stephen White reflects on the beginning of Lent.

The William E. Simon Lecture: What Ukraine Means

February 28, 6:30 PM
Mayflower Hotel
1127 Connecticut Avenue, Northwest State Room, Washington, DC 20036

The Ethics and Public Policy Center cordially invites you to the 21st Annual William E. Simon Lecture, "What Ukraine Means", presented by George Weigel.

The lecture will be followed by a reception.

What Cardinal Pell Meant: A Personal Reflection

March 8, 6 PM
Catholic Information Center
1501 K Street NW, Suite 175, Washington, DC xxxxxx

With the unexpected death of Cardinal George Pell on January 10, 2023, the Church lost a champion of orthodoxy and one of this century’s great examples of Christian witness. Pell led a storied ecclesiastical career, serving as Archbishop of Sydney from 2001 to 2014 and as inaugural Prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy from 2014 to 2019. But it was in his final years that the cardinal faced perhaps his greatest trial—a false conviction, followed by 404 days of imprisonment, before his eventual acquittal by Australia’s highest court.

Join us as George Weigel, who was in Rome with Pell during the cardinal’s final week, reflects on the moral courage of his dear friend.

Adam and Eve after the Pill: REVISITED

March 15 | 5 PM Mass, 6 PM Talk, 7 PM Reception
Catholic Information Center
1501 K Street NW, Suite 175, Washington, DC xxxxxx

Celebrated author Mary Eberstadt continues her ground-breaking examination of the legacy of the sexual revolution. The book’s predecessor, Adam and Eve after the Pill (2012), dissected the revolution’s microcosmic fallout via its empirical effects on the lives of men, women, and children. This follow-on book investigates the revolution’s macrocosmic transformations in three spheres: society, politics, and Christianity. It also includes an analysis of the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision that overturned Roe v. Wade.

With unflinching logic, Eberstadt summarizes the toll on Western society of today’s fractured homes, feral children, and social isolates. Empathetic yet precise, she connects the dots between shrinking, broken families and rising sexual confusion, seen most recently in transgenderism and related phenomena. The book also traces the dissolution of the home to signature developments in Western politics, especially the increase in acrimony, polarization, street violence, and identity politics. The result is an indictment of the turn taken by much of the world following the post-1960s embrace of contraception and the stigmatization of traditional morality.

The book’s section on the revolution’s infiltration of the churches is must-reading for anyone concerned about the fate of Western Christianity. In a moment when millions wonder whether the Catholic Church will retreat from age-old moral teachings, this book demands to be put at the center of discussion.

Ethics and Public Policy Center

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