A 9-year-old Texas girl lost her life participating in a dangerous social media challenge.
9-year-old Jacklynn Blackwell is the latest victim of juveniles losing their lives over social media challenges.
Jacklynn was doing the 'blackout challenge,' which requires the participant to choke themselves until they lose consciousness.
Sadly, Jacklynn took the game too far, and her one-time decision to follow the trend had fatal consequences.
According to family, Jacklynn had shown her grandmother a video of another youth participating in the 'blackout challenge' on February 3rd just a short time before attempting it herself.
Her father, Curtis Blackwell, described the traumatic series of events. Curtis stated that Jacklynn had gone out to play. After a little while, Curtis noticed an eerie silence on the property.
This prompted Curtis to check on Jacklynn and see what she was up to. What he found has left him with a profound sadness and anger at the algorithms that push this type of dangerous behavior into our childrens' news feeds.
Curtis said as he rounded the carport where she generally played he caught a glimpse of her hair. At first, he thought she was just bending over, until a closer inspection revealed the devastating truth.
Jacklynn was lifeless with a cord around her neck. The shocked father quickly jumped into lifesaving mode. Curtis removed the cord and began to administer CPR desperately until first responders arrived on the scene. Jacklynn was rushed to a nearby hospital, but sadly, it was too late, and she was pronounced deceased.
Curtis says, "It was the most terrifying, shocking thing I have ever seen. It was horrible to see my daughter in such a vulnerable state because of something so senseless."
Now, Jacklynn's parents are hoping their daughters death may serve as a wake-up call to other parents.
You should be aware of the types of content your children are consuming and speak with them about consequences. This isn't a new game or challenge but more children hear about it via social media.
Curtis says, "It's not a joke. it's not a game, it's life or death."
Too many of our kids are falling victim to the never-ending barage of social media challenges, many of which are dangerous.
Our thoughts are with Jacklynn's family. We think it is very brave and selfless for them to share their personal tragedy in hopes of saving other childrens lives.
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