(Toronto) Five other Ontario school boards, as well as two private schools, are suing social media giants Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Snapchat.
They join some of Ontario’s largest school boards who filed lawsuits in March, alleging the platforms were negligently designed for compulsive use and have changed the way children think, behave and learn, leaving teachers and schools to deal with the consequences.
The Ottawa, Dufferin-Peel and York Catholic school boards, as well as the Trillium Lakeland District School Board and the Niagara District School Board, are filing their own lawsuits. A private Catholic school in Mississauga and a private Jewish school complete the list of 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, lawsuits in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice .
The allegations in the lawsuits have not been proven in court.
A TikTok spokesperson assured its team of “safety professionals” continually evaluates practices aimed at supporting the well-being of teens, while Snapchat said it is happy with the role it plays in helping friends to stay connected in the face of the challenges of adolescence.
Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.