Child Abuse Survivor - Issue #188
The Deep-Fake Nude Crisis in Schools
Giving teenagers and pre-teens access to tools that let them create fake images of their schoolmates is always a bad idea. I don’t know that anyone thought it was harmless, but the rate at which these kinds of things are happening is beyond alarming:
The Deepfake Nudes Crisis in Schools Is Much Worse Than You Thought
The true scale of deepfake sexual abuse taking place in schools is likely much higher. One survey by United Nations children’s agency Unicef estimates that 1.2 million children had sexual deepfakes created of them last year. One in five young people in Spain told Save the Children researchers that deepfake nudes had been created of them. Child protection group Thorn found one in eight teens know someone targeted, and in 2024, 15 percent of students surveyed by the Center for Democracy and Technology said they knew about AI-generated deepfakes linked to their school.
Thank you for reading the Child Abuse and Mental Health Survivors newsletter. Each week, I share new blog posts and other resources that aim to help survivors of childhood abuse and those who are struggling with mental health issues feel less alone as we discuss the issues surrounding our issues.
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Much like other forms of abuse, I think it is very likely that even these survey responses are underrepresenting the true numbers.
We are reaching the point where the statistics begin to paint a clear picture. Every teen knows someone who has had a fake nude image made of them and shared. Most of them just haven’t told anyone, yet.
The analysis in the article makes it pretty clear, at least in the publicly known cases, that it's almost always teenage boys creating images of girls they know and sharing them on social media and group texts.
The damage caused to those teen girls is immense. They didn’t do anything. They simply existed, and boys felt free to take a photo they shared on Instagram or the school yearbook, and turn it into a nude shot using AI.
That is abusive behavior. Behavior that too many boys and men in this world think is appropriate because we have done a piss poor job raising boys who respect the value of others.
We exist in a world where there are online groups dedicated to learning how to rape your partner.
It’s no wonder women would choose the bear.
I don’t blame them.
To my fellow men, we need to do better. We need to be clear that all of this is wrong. Not just in online spaces but with your buddies, at the game, when having a drink. There needs to be a zero tolerance for disrespect.
The man in me is angry at us. The sexual abuse survivor in me is heartbroken that so many abusers are out there going unchallenged when abusing others.
Fuck that.
New from the Blogs
Continuing on a theme that included the intro to the newsletter last week:
How do families cope when no one wants to fund resources in their local area? Situations like this can’t be the solution.
Sharing - Michigan kids in mental health crisis sent out of state as facilities close
I’m glad she was able to get help. I’m glad she is here and able to give this interview. How many kids aren’t because they didn’t have the option to go 11 hours away to receive the kind of care that would keep them here? Why is treatment for serious mental health issues so limited and hard to find?
It’s easy to talk about supporting mental health, but is it too much to ask that we fund the resources needed to provide that and allow them to exist in our neighborhoods?
It shouldn’t be.
Sharing - Study shows masculine depression is not just a male mental health pattern
When men display anger, anxiety, and irritation, we tend not to think of it as depression, but it very well can be.
This study taught me something, though. That kind of depression, which we refer to as “masculine,” is not something that only men can display, so we ought to consider how many people across the gender spectrum may be suffering from depression and not recognizing it.
Sharing - How schools can support mental health in high-needs areas
Schools in poor areas where students are likely to be dealing with instability at home and poverty all around them have different mental health needs than kids living in a wealthy suburb. Programs designed to help families in poverty should be part of school mental health programs. As I've said many times, you can't meditate or exercise your way out of poverty. A full-service mental health program would recognize the impact that something like poverty has on kids.
Sharing - Finding Beauty in the Pieces: A Journey Through Healing
I love the idea that healing can be messy. Most truly human things worth doing are messy and chaotic. We weren't made to only do easy things, but we are made to grow and heal.
Shared from Elsewhere
Once again, we’ve designed a society that causes this:
Middle-aged Americans face rising loneliness and mental health challenges
Related - The Hidden Power of Talking to Strangers
This is good information to be familiar with:
How to spot and help someone in a mental health crisis
So is this reminder about underlying causes - PTSD often underlies mental health, substance use disorder issues.
Just accept people for who they are, but this seems like a foreign concept to so many:
Research: Affirming Identity Boosts Mental Health
Finally, there’s a lot to think about here - What is mental wellbeing, really? New study offers a clear answer
Making a Difference:
A local teen’s aquascaping nonprofit helps with mental health issues
“Art for Good” campaign highlights art’s mental health impact
Thanks for reading. If you find this newsletter informative and helpful, please share it with others. That’s the best way to express gratitude for my weekly efforts.