“EVEN SMART STRONG KIDS CAN MAKE DUMB CHOICES WITH DEADLY CONSEQUENCES”  ...

Arguably the deadliest and most viral of all online challenges are pass out activities, commonly known in the media as “The Choking Game” or "Blackout Challenge" which have been around for centuries.  Unlike auto-erotic asphyxiation  (AeA), teens and tweens have been experimenting with this for non-sexual reasons (curiosity, peer pressure, the mistaken belief that it is safer than drugs, etc.) because they are unaware of the dangers.

This generations-old issue continues to experience resurgence as a result of TikTok, YouTube and other social media, making the internet a cyber-playground.  Kids learn this deadly activity from other kids all across the world and believe other kids when they say it is harmless.  Kids lack effective education to combat what they see on the web and across social media platforms, making them think that these challenges are innocent fun, putting them all at risk for injury and death.

These challenges differ from other risky activities is that they:

• are not illegal and has no deterrent of legal consequence;
• do not require acquisition of a product;
• can be “played” alone; and
• interrupts basic brain function, therefore it is impossible to know when brain damage or death will occur.

Equal-Opportunity Dangers:  Challenges know no racial, cultural, religious or socio-economic boundaries ...

While studies estimate 6 – 16% of teens have participated in pass-out challenges, anecdotal reports indicate the numbers to be much higher.  News articles regularly articles cite these particular challenges as one of the top dangerous behaviors that need to be on parents’ radar.

Statistically it has been considered an aberration because the numbers of deaths and injuries attributed to this challenge appear small, hence unimportant.  But statistics do not tell the story.  There are no public health databases to monitor these activities.  In addition, there is no standardized way for law enforcement and medical examiners to determine cause of death.  As a result, most deaths from these challenges are misclassified as suicides.  And challenge-related injuries are rarely reported with the correct attribution.  Even when a correct determination is made, many families bear their grief in silence because of shock and shame, “How could my child have done something so stupid?  What was s/he thinking?”

Erik Robinson is one such victim of this deadly Online Challenge ...

My son Erik died April 21, 2010 from what was then commonly called the Choking Game.  He was a normal, healthy 6th grader at Lincoln Middle School in Santa Monica, California - an "A" student, avid athlete and boy scout and fully engaged in life. His dream was to go to West Point, enter the military and then law enforcement. He was the opposite of a youth "at risk".  Credible evidence indicates that Erik's first exposure to this challenge was during school the day before he tried it at home and died.

At first we said that Erik died from a tragic accident until one schoolmate came forward and corroborated what the police maintained.  A reporter wanted to write a story that Erik was cyber-bullied into suicide which was totally false.  I was so incensed that I decided to go public with the truth.

Thus began the journey called Erik’s Cause ...

We believe that knowledge is power and that prevention education is the most effective way to combat the rampant popularity of these challenges.  With the valuable input of many professionals, parents and kids, we have created an exceptional non-graphic skill-based training module that addresses the dangers (as well as risk activities in general) in a way that does not make kids curious to try it while building character skills to help kids say “no” to risk-taking behavior in general.  The training is standardized and can be easily replicated by any teacher or presenter.  We also offer education for parents which helps them talk with their children about this activity as well as other sensitive topics.  (All services free of charge.)

With the 2021 Congressional Hearings and Whistleblower Testimony we learned even more ...

Prior to the 2021 Congressional hearings and whistleblower testimony, we thought that a child needed to know a "name" of a challenge, type it in and click on the actual video.  But as a result of the hearings and testimony we learned that Apps and platforms use algorithms to specifically target our youth with challenges and encourage them to try them without any care or understanding of whether or not they are safe.

For example, TikTok has a "For You" section that recommends videos that the App thinks the user might like.  Frequently these challenges are in this "For You" section.  The Apps don't simply don't care about safety.  They only want "clicks" and "likes," and to keep the user online for as long as possible to make bigger profits from advertisers.  

Decades ago, talk of substance abuse prevention in schools was unthinkable.  Bullying was a taboo subject until it gained national attention.  We believe the time has come to bring these challenges out of the shadows and into public awareness so our children can be saved from this epidemic and families can be spared the grief of losing a child to this preventable activity.

Erik's dream was to be a soldier - he wanted to save lives.  My mission is to honor his legacy by saving the lives of other kids and sparing families from this type of blindsiding loss. Please share your story with us, tell a friend, share with others, join our cause and save kids' lives.

Thank you, Judy Rogg (Erik's mom)

Click below to support KOSA (Kids Online Safety Act):

Click below to view part of our training module
NAVIGATING SOCIAL MEDIA CHALLENGES

Click below to access interactive victim map

Debunking the myth about educating kids
The Erik's Cause training program does NOT make kids curious to play!  

click below to view data