Yahoo Lifestyle 5 Reasons Monica Lewinsky's TED Talk Was So Important
Monica Lewinsky. Photo: Getty Images.
Monica Lewinsky was just 22-years old when she made headlines around the world for having an affair with then-President Bill Clinton.
Her side of the story is one rarely told, or heard, and in fact, Lewinsky went underground for a decade afterwards in an effort to avoid the spotlight.
But now, she's back - and the 41-year old is using her experience to speak out against cyberbullying, which she says made her near suicidal at the time.
At a TED talk in Vancouver, Lewinsky detailed how she'd been abused online for her actions - and why it was important for her to keep speaking about those moments.
Here are 5 reasons Lewinsky rocked her TED talk - and why the world needs to learn from, rather than punish, her experiences:
1. She acknowledges her mistakes. "I'm probably the only person over 40 who does not want to be 22 again."
2. She knows first-hand the effects of cyberbullying on a person's health and mental wellbeing: "We lived in a time where my mum would sit next to my bed as I slept. Where I had to shower with the door open. My parents feared I would be humiliated to death."
3. She recognises the importance of speaking up. "From 2012 to 2013, there was an 87 per cent increase in calls related to cyber bullying. For the first time, cyberbullying is leading to suicidal ideations more significantly than offline bullying."
4. She wants everyone to be on board to help eliminate internet-fuelled hate. "Gossip websites, paparazzi, reality programming, politics, news outlets, and sometimes hackers traffic in shame... Public humiliation as a blood sport needs to stop."
5. She wants YOU to turn your story around. "We have a compassion deficit, an empathy crisis. You can insist on a different ending to your story. Have compassion for yourself."
There is a lot to learn from Monica Lewinsky - and perhaps that's something she didn't know back in 1998.
Below is a snippet from her TED talk:
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