Taking a stand for decency

THE shocking video of a teenager blowing marijuana smoke into the face of her young brother has attracted enormous community backlash.

And rightly so.

In the video the 17-year-old teenager can be seen taking a draw of marijuana from a homemade bong before looking at the two-year-old boy and blowing it directly in his face.

The child then attempts to leave the situation as the teenager and a person behind the camera start laughing.

A disgusted viewer recorded the confronting video, which quickly went viral on social media, and the community’s outrage was swift and decisive. Police fielded hundreds of calls from shocked residents and within a couple of hours the teenager had been dealt with under the provisions of the Youth Justice Act.

That such a disgraceful act has occurred in a setting where a child should be at their safest, in their own home, is appalling and the community has given its unequivocal response: behaviour where a child is exposed to unnecessary harm and behaviour is simply not on.

The community deserves to be commended for not only reacting with such horror at the video, but for also alerting authorities and giving police the quickest chance to intervene.

Child Protection and Investigation Unit officer-in-charge Detective Senior Sergeant Dave Miles thanked the public for their overwhelming and proactive response to the video, which he labelled as a blatant example of exploitation of a vulnerable child.

Social media has long been known for its potential for harm, but in this case its usefulness as a weapon for good has come to the fore.

The days of the old neighbourhood may be a thing of the past, but it still takes a village to raise a child.

It’s up to us as a community to ensure our children are part of a safe and healthy environment – and when circumstances call for it – stand up to make them heard.