Courtesy Netflix
Parents across the country are outraged about the Netflix show 13 Reasons Why, which tells a story of teen suicide, and its potential for triggering copycat suicides.
This we knew. What we did not know is that the show has been tied to a 26-percent increase in internet searches about specific methods to die by suicide.
An online petition is circulating that is asking for Netflix to include the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline phone number on all episodes of the upcoming season two. I see no reason why this isn’t a good idea.
There’s also a petition on Change.org calling for the removal of the show altogether from the Netflix service.
“Netflix isn’t going to pull it and kids are watching it, and they’re binge watching it without anyone helping them process it,” Phyllis Alongi, clinical director of the Society for the Prevention of Teen Suicide told NBC News. “We feel [the show] was done irresponsibly and we don’t agree with many portrayals including of Hannah’s death, memorialization, and placing blame on others.”
Parents who are up in arms must think their children are stupid enough to copy something just because they see it on TV. It’s like the early ‘90s, when Republican Bob Dole condemned the movie Trainspotting for glorifying heroin use, when he didn’t see the horror that happens later in the movie. In fact, he didn’t watch the movie at all.
The final episode of 13 Reasons Why season one, which features Hannah’s death by suicide, is terrifying. The graphic detail is the stuff of nightmares.
And how can we be sure that that uptick in internet searches is because of the show?
Widely praised by TV critics and bloggers,13 Reasons Why follows the travails of Hannah Baker, a high school girl who struggles with mental health and commits suicide, leaving behind a shoebox full of audio tapes outlining the 13 people (reasons) why she did it. The tapes are passed secretly among the high schoolers tangled in Hannah’s web.
13 Reasons Why is a favorite of this blogger. It’s an authentic portrayal of high school life in the 21st century. And the acting is on-point. It is artistic and it is a rare dose of reality in its teen drama genre. 13 Reasons Why handles suicide in a truthful way. It’s not just the bullied who are vulnerable to suicide, it’s anyone who is hardwired for harming themselves.
The most tweeted about show in 2017 — even beating out Game of Thrones — is here to stay, and according to the show’s creators and stars, it’s not going to water itself down in the near future. One of its stars and its executive producer Tom McCarthy have both said that season two will not be censored, despite pressure from parents to tone down the show.
Dylan Minnette, who plays Clay Jensen on the show, had the following to say to The Hollywood Reporter:
I would be shocked if anything is censored. The whole goal of the show is to be real and tell the story in a true way. And if they weren’t going to do that in more scenes, I don’t think they’d keep going with the show. They aren’t going to sugarcoat anything… I’m sure it’s going to be just as important and dark as last season.
Some have lauded the show for bringing awareness to teen suicide, sexual abuse, and bullying. But there are others who only see negative effects of the show, particularly the graphic depiction of rape and Hannah’s slitting her wrists in a bathtub.
The season-one cliffhanger left a carrot dangling for fans. And while I’m not going to get into spoilers here, numerous sites have come up with theories and rumors. Have at it.
Here is the trailer for 13 Reasons Why – Season 2. The second season will be released March 31.
If you are thinking of harming yourself or are having suicidal ideation, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255.
