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Dear [ ... ]:

I hope this letter finds you well – or as well as is possible given the state of the world. And it’s because of the state of the world, of Canada, that I am writing to you as a fellow Canadian and author to ask your support in lobbying our federal government to help make digital media literacy classes mandatory in K – 12 school programs.

Briefly, why does media literacy matter? You’ve probably noticed the rise of divisive online content - scams, disinformation, and hate messages. Much of it is intentional, aimed at dividing and weakening our society, our democratic values, and our trust in one another. With trolls, bots, and AI it will only get worse. Most troubling of all is the impact on our younger generations.

In Scandinavian countries, media literacy courses are required components of K – 12 educations, promoting skills essential for safeguarding mental health, engaging in civic discourse, and making well-informed life decisions. But in Canada, media literacy classes are optional.

There is talk of banning social media for children under 16, but if such legislation passes, it’s only a partial solution. If children have the skills to discern truth from falsehood, then the odds are better that harmful messages will fall on barren ground.

What can we do?

Along with other Canadian authors, I've signed an Open Letter to the Federal government advocating required digital media literacy classes in schools. 

If you want to see which authors have already signed the Open Letter,  or learn more about media literacy and schools, check out the Canadians for Media Literacy website.

• Canadians for Media Literacy website: https://canadiansformedialiteracy.org/
• Read the Open Letter (and see which authors have already signed) :  https://canadiansformedialiteracy.org/open_letter/
• Read more about what other countries are doing:  https://canadiansformedialiteracy.org/resources/ 

I hope you’ll help and perhaps also forward this email to other authors.

Thank you,

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