By Canadian Press

Five Ontario school boards, two schools join legal fight against social media giants

May 29, 2024 | 6:07 AM

TORONTO — Five more Ontario school boards and two private schools are suing social media giants Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Snapchat.

They join some of Ontario’s largest school boards who filed suits in March alleging the platforms are negligently designed for compulsive use and have rewired the way children think, behave and learn, leaving teachers and schools to handle the consequences.

Filing their own lawsuits are the Catholic boards in Ottawa, Dufferin-Peel and York, along with Trillium Lakeland District School Board and District School Board of Niagara. A private Catholic school in Mississauga, Ont., and a private Jewish school round out the list of the new plaintiffs.

In March, Toronto’s public and Catholic school boards, the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board and the Peel District School Board filed four separate but similar cases with Ontario’s Superior Court of Justice.

The allegations in the lawsuits have not been proven in court.

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A spokesperson for TikTok has said its team of “safety professionals” continually evaluate practices to support teens’ well-being, while Snapchat has said its happy with the role it plays helping friends stay connected as they face the challenges of adolescence. Meta, the parent company for Facebook and Instagram, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 29, 2024.

The Canadian Press