This article mentions suicide. Please take care while reading.
By all accounts, Aubreigh Wyatt was a flourishing teenager in 2023, involved in her church youth group, and seemingly popular among friends. Wyatt, however, was relentlessly bullied by a certain group of girls at her Ocean Springs, Mississippi middle school, and in September 2023, Wyatt died by suicide.
Like many her age, Wyatt was obsessed with social media. According to Wyatt’s mother, Heather Wyatt, social media and the cyber-bullying allowed on those platforms are partially responsible for her daughter’s decision to end her life. In April 2024 Heather filed a lawsuit against social media, the Biloxi Sun Herald reported.
Wyatt’s harassment was not limited to apps. It also happened at school and social events. According to Heather’s lawsuit, among others filed by families for similar reasons, social media is specifically designed to hook young people. Once Wyatt was on those platforms, she experienced suicidal ideation, among other mental health symptoms, her family said.
Social media hides the fact it’s addictive, according to the Wyatt family suit
Wyatt’s wrongful death suit targets Meta — Facebook and Instagram’s parent company — alleging Meta covered up data about the harmful effects of social media and lied to parents about how safe those platforms are. If Heather had known the truth about social media, the lawsuit says, she would have never allowed Aubreigh to become a user.
“The plague of bullying and cyberbullying is a very real and present threat to our society, especially to our children and youth. If the perpetrators of this type of senseless and horrific behavior are not held accountable, this plague will continue to devastate our children,” a statement from the Wyatt family’s law firm said.
Underscoring ongoing bullying problems, Wyatt’s mother says she tried to address her daughter’s situation with Ocean Springs school officials but it never stopped. She also sought to console her daughter about the on-again-off-again social problems she experienced and assured her things would get better.
Aubreigh’s mom is on TikTok
Today, Heather is on TikTok herself telling Aubreigh’s story, raising awareness about teen suicide, and sharing the effects Aubreigh’s suicide had on her siblings and family. In one post, she said she saw no signs that Ashleigh was suicidal before she died.
“I think Aubrey did affect so many people because it became like, ‘OK, wait, this is the girl next door. This is the girl that’s friends with everyone. This is the girl that is sociable and liked. What went wrong?'” Heather had said, referring to her daughter’s tragic death.
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org. A list of international crisis resources can be found here.
