When most of us think of social media challenges, we think about the cinnamon challenge or the ice bucket challenge. For the most part, these types of challenges are completely safe and some of them even raise money for good causes. However, there is a new challenge appearing on social media and it's extremely scary and even terrifying if you learn more about it. It's known as the Blue Whale game, or the "Suicide Challenge," started by a twenty-one year old man from Russia.
Evidence of this new social media 'challenge'
The challenge consists of brainwashing vulnerable teenagers for a fifty day period of time.
During this fifty day period, the teenagers are asked to do dangerous things such as self-harm. They are told that it will "make them feel better." At the end of the fifty days, the teenagers are pressured into committing suicide. The man who started it, Philipp Budeikin, now faces charges for convincing at least sixteen teenage girls to commit suicide. Almost all of these incidents occurred in Russia and a couple in Great Britain, however, schools in America have passed the news on to parents. Some students in Alabama have stated that the game has already been introduced to some students in the United States.
The Baldwin County School spokesman, Terry Whilhite, talked about the "challenge" and why students need to be warned to stay away from others who discuss the game.
It was further advised that if students were to hear about the game, they need to tell the authorities immediately. Whilhite said there were no incidents as of now, but that it is important to inform parents of the game that originally started in Russia. State investigators over in Russia estimate that 130 suicides over the past two years might in fact be in connection with the game.
Apparently, teens have been tagging each other in Facebook statuses, trying to get their friends to play the game with them.
The game is mainly seen across Snapchat. Students are then pressured to download the Blue Whale App which will steal your private information. The creators of the game then threaten to kill family members and threaten to release the students' personal information, unless they commit suicide.
Putting an end to the 'game'
The man behind the game has stated that he is doing the right thing to "better the world." He told investigators that he believes that his young female victims were "more than happy to die." A young girl, Anna, from Russia, allegedly committed suicide after being obsessed with the "game." Even though the creator of the game has been arrested, police are worried that the game has spread to Great Britain and the United States.
Schools in the US have already been on high alert that some of their schools have been targeted by the suicide game.
While I personally find this terrifying, I believe it's important to talk about it to prevent people from getting involved with it any further. I hope that the man behind the challenge is charged with every person who has harmed themselves because of it. This is one of the most disgusting things I have seen, and I hope those responsible are caught very soon.
I hope this game doesn't spread further into the US, but if it does, then parents and police officers need to be aware of it, and deal with it accordingly. School districts in Alabama and Connecticut have already warned parents about this new social media app. If you are a teen in need of help, remember, there are people out there who truly do want to help you. Don't take part in a game that will hurt you.
