There is a deep irony in the discord surrounding the government’s latest, unjustified attempt to eliminate youth violence.

Discord and Reddit are popular apps and websites in the Philippines that connect people from all throughout the nation and from different parts of the world, allowing different people to communicate and interact with each other. Yet today, these platforms face scrutiny, serving as scapegoats for the current issue of youth violence.

Having used Discord myself, I recognize the risks present on the platform. However, do these same risks not exist across all social media applications? Why only ban Discord and Reddit, when other platforms pose a greater threat to minors?

I can’t help but wonder: is the banishment of social media platforms really the solution to youth-related issues, or is it merely a distraction for problems that require deeper intervention?

Take Facebook, for example—the most widely used social media app in the country. It continuously struggles with content moderation and the exploitation of minors. This was even highlighted during investigations of the Tacloban shooting incident, yet calls for a total ban on the application were never seriously pursued.

Meanwhile, in the gaming community, Discord is the primary hub for communication. Like any open platform, it has seen cases of grooming and cyberbullying where harmful online interactions influenced real-world choices. But just like any other app, mitigating these risks relies heavily on personal responsibility and active parental involvement.

Parental guidance—not heavy-handed regulation of video games or social media—must be the core focus to solve this problem. Parents hold the primary responsibility to guide their children, instill a sense of right and wrong, and monitor the devices they allow their children to use.

As someone who grew up with proper guidance on these platforms, I know firsthand that digital literacy, paired with responsibility, addresses the root cause of the problem far better than permanent restriction, which acts merely as a temporary band-aid solutions.

Social media is an inescapable tool for communication and connection in the Philippines. People use it for daily conversations with peers and others, making these platforms essential in the country. For the eyes of others, social media may seem like a way for minors to be wrongly influenced. But for the youth, where everyday life is a constant battle of pressure, stress, and anxiety, social media and gaming platforms become an escape from reality—simply giving us time to breathe.

 Rather than imposing bans, we need targeted education for both children and parents. Teaching parents about the online landscape bridges the generational tech gap and empowers them to prevent unwanted exposure to harmful content. 

Yes, while social media can be a way of socializing and learning, it also comes with negative repercussions. Issues like cyberbullying, mental health problems, and harassment also affect a large number of people on social media. However, these problems would never arise in the first place if children were taught how to approach social media with the proper principles and ethics.

While some platforms, such as Roblox, have already imposed stricter moderation and age verification, these mechanisms can still be easily bypassed on many sites. Social media companies must further strengthen their verification systems and take active responsibility in preventing cases of youth violence. However, while platforms must strictly enforce age limits within their spaces, ultimate oversight still starts with the values the children are taught.

Beyond digital spaces, legislative measures are also being proposed, including stricter penalties for firearm owners whose weapons are accessed by a minor. While such initiatives should move forward, we cannot rely solely on fear and punishment to prevent these tragedies—education remains the most effective solution. 

        Subjects like Media and Information Literacy (MIL) in the Senior High School curriculum already teach students how to analyze and navigate the digital world responsibly. This instruction should be integrated across the entire K–12 system, rather than being restricted to Senior High School alone.

If violence is caused by multiple factors, then simply banning platforms like Discord and Reddit will not reduce youth violence; it will simply drive young people toward unmonitored backdoors and darker corners of the internet. The government must address youth violence through informed, constructive solutions—rather than creating further discord through these reactionary bans.