Everything you do has a consequence, which is why there is so much power in anonymity -- in being able to say anything at all without any consequences. Or, so it would appear. 

There is a new social media app called Yik Yak, which is gaining popularity on college campuses across the country. Developed by two Furman University graduates, Brooks Buffington and Tyler Droll, this app allows users to anonymously post absolutely anything on their minds to 500 users in their vicinity. Although the top two rules, in the rules and info tab of Yik Yak, read: “you do not bully or specifically target other yakkers,” not all users adhere to the rules. As a result, the app has started causing controversy on several campuses, especially because it is becoming a hotspot for cyber-bullying.

On Sept. 19, in the most extreme case of Yik Yak cyber-bullying yet, a University of Georgia student was arrested for “yakking” a threat of violence with reference to firearms. Multiple students reported the yak which said: “If you want to live, don’t be at the MLC at 12:15.” The student, Ariel Omar Arias, was charged with two felony counts of terroristic threats. 

The creators of Yik Yak had good intentions, stating that, “Your popularity, race, gender, sexuality and looks don’t mean anything on Yik Yak… You can be the quietest person on campus and the most popular poster on Yik Yak. The only thing you are judged on is on the content you have created, nothing else. Anonymity is a beautiful thing.”      

Idealistically speaking, the app is a great concept. Realistically speaking, things are bound to go wrong. An app meant to be lighthearted and funny is going to be taken much too far, when people have the power of posting behind the mask of anonymity. To this, I propose two solutions. First, un-download or just don’t download Yik Yak to begin with. Put your electronics away and connect with people. Stop investing so much time into the black, unfeeling void of social media and start connecting with the people who actually care about you and what you have to say. Second, if you do download Yik Yak, don’t take things so seriously and don’t use it to hide how you truly are. We need to stop hiding and start owning up to ourselves.