I'm not one to sign online petitions, but when the 36 months change petition crossed my feed last month I clicked and signed.
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You might have seen people posting photos of their 13-year-old self alongside the petition on their social feeds, you might be asking why.
At the moment, in Australia, you have to be 13-years-old to sign up to social media. Founders of the 36-months campaign are asking the government to change this policy to 16-years-old.
![Me being 13 and mostly trouble tree on a holiday I believe. Picture by my dad Me being 13 and mostly trouble tree on a holiday I believe. Picture by my dad](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/39334uWFriQ6mZbDw7tBDLC/5d383bbd-6821-462c-b598-12bd047983f2.png/r0_0_1920_1079_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Their reasoning? At 13-years-old a teenager's brain isn't ready to process the online world safely. Hell, I'm 33 and I don't think I'm old enough to navigate social media.
Co-founders radio host Michael 'Wippa' Wipfli and film production company owner Rob Galluzzo started the campaign on May 14 this year. As of Wednesday lunchtime it'd received 100,052 signatures and it's easy to understand why.
I was 13 in 2004. John Howard was prime minister, QANTAS launched Jetstar, Tassie-born Mary Donaldson married Frederick, Crown Prince of Denmark. Jennifer Hawkins was crowned Miss Universe. The Indian Ocean Tsunami hit Indonesia.
And a guy named Mark Zuckerberg created a little website in his Harvard dorm room called TheFacebook, now known as Facebook.
I think about if I had social media when I was 13 and I cringe, hard.
That awkward phase of trying to be a teenager but still being childish. Not quite knowing where you fit or if you do know you don't quite fit yourself.
If I had an avenue to voice all these opinions online I would have opened myself up to a world of embarrassment and potential hurt.
To be honest, the stuff I was posting in 2007 when I did finally get on Facebook was cring-ey enough. But at least I had three more years under my belt of life experience.
To open barely teenagers up to the false reality of social media and the exposure to 24 hour conversations seems terrifying.
When I think of my four-year-old daughter or two-year-old son on socials I am a bit fearful. I can't create the security and protection in an online world that I have provided in real life.
We also don't know what the future of social media looks like with the rise of deep fakes and artificial intelligence. Two years ago my husband and I made the decision not to post our kids faces on my public Instagram account. Anyone who follows me would probably be familiar with the back of my kids heads as a result. But I still feel most comfortable with this option for us.
!['Wippa' is one of the brains behind the 36-month plan. Picture is from file 'Wippa' is one of the brains behind the 36-month plan. Picture is from file](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/194363481/023791cd-3f43-4388-bebe-e91e1fcfdf9f.jpg/r0_0_1048_1486_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
I am by no means anti-social media. I spend way to much time scrolling on Instagram and Facebook. Social media is a large part of my job and an easy way to connect with The Catch-Up audience. It can be a beautiful place where you build a connection, or reestablish friendships or attempt to make plans with your other mum friends. I also don't judge other families for posting their kiddos online. In fact, I love it. With all the crappy news in the world, we could all use an extra smiling face on our feed, especially if it's missing a few teeth to the tooth fairy.
But I firmly believe it's not a place for a 13-year-old kid to have to navigate.
I know that the government increasing the age limit isn't going to solve the issue and there will be ways for kids to get around the verification processes if they chose. But, it is surely a step in the right direction and a good guideline for parents, like me who are dreading their kids being introduced to social media.
You can find the petition here: https://www.change.org/p/36-months-raising-the-age-for-social-media-citizenship