Kate Winslet gives emotional speech highlighting every parent’s fear about harmful social media

Immediately after winning her Leading Actress BAFTA award Sunday night, Kate Winslet used her acceptance speech to call for action regarding social media and the harmful effect it has on children.

She called for “people in power” to “criminalize harmful content,” after winning her award for “I Am Ruth,” a miniseries that chronicles the relationship between a mother and child who is dealing with mental health pressures coming from the online world. She made the film with her own daughter, Mia Threapleton, who starred alongside her mom.

“’I Am Ruth’ was made for parents and their children, for families who feel that they are held hostage by the perils of the online world, for parents who wish they could still communicate with their teenagers, but who no longer can,” Winslet explained.

She addresses the fact that teenagers specifically are, in fact, addicted to social media.

“Please eradicate harmful content, we don’t want it,” she continued. “We want our children back. We don’t want to lie awake, terrified by our children’s mental health.”

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In the United Kingdom, the House of Lords is currently battling over the Online Safety Bill, which aims to tackle illegal and harmful content online. In the United States, there is currently a bipartisan bill on the table in Congress that would prohibit anyone younger than 13 from being able to access social media.

Research shows 24% of adolescents are social media addicts. This is harmful because the frequent usage of social media constantly causes adolescents to compare themselves socially with their peers. It also causes adolescents to be psychologically affected negatively. Social media posts reflecting certain ideals encourage adolescents to make comparisons with their peers in terms of body image, life experiences, and abilities. 

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That’s what makes Winslet’s work and her speech so impactful—it touches on every parent’s fear about our children and social media.

“And to any young person who might be listening, who feels that they are trapped in an unhealthy world: Please ask for help. There is no shame in admitting that you need support. It will be there just ask for it.”