HR0014LRB100 04175 RLC 14181 r 1HOUSE RESOLUTION 2 WHEREAS, Four out of five children aged 2 to 17 in the 3United States live in a home in which either they or their 4parents access the Internet; and 5 WHEREAS, Youth who create Internet content and use social 6networking sites are more likely to be targets of 7cyber-bullying; and 8 WHEREAS, Some parents use social media as a means to 9discipline, embarrass, or coerce their child in order to 10correct behavior in their child that the parents believe is 11inappropriate; and 12 WHEREAS, This type of online victimization is associated 13with emotional distress and other psychological problems, 14including depression; and 15 WHEREAS, Cyber-bullying, especially by parents, can cause 16psychological harm, including depression, negatively impact 17academic performance, safety, and the well-being of the child 18and in some cases lead to extreme violent behavior, including 19murder and suicide; and 20 WHEREAS, Sixty percent of mental health professionals who

HR0014- 2 -LRB100 04175 RLC 14181 r 1responded to the Survey of Internet Mental Health Issues report 2having treated at least one patient with a problematic Internet 3experience in the previous 5 years; many of these clients were 4under 18 years of age; therefore, be it 5 RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE 6HUNDREDTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we 7urge Congress, consistent with the First Amendment to the 8United States Constitution, to pass a law prohibiting parents 9from cyber-bullying their children by posting messages or 10images on social media sites on the Internet that embarrass, 11intimidate, coerce, harass, or cause substantial emotional 12distress to their children; and be it further 13 RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this Resolution be 14forwarded to each member of the Illinois Congressional 15delegation.