New Twitter account aims to celebrate heroes of Central York
- cysdsites
- Apr 23, 2014
- 2 min read
Social media provides a platform for communication of all kinds, good and bad, courageous and cowardly. From the Facebook group of “Smut Central” to the Twitter account “Yocofessions,” social media has been inappropriately used to spread gossip and hatred. So when someone uses social media to promote individuals district-wide and show the schools in a positive light, it is a vastly different situation from the norm.
Meet the Twitter account “realCYHSheroes.” The operators wish to remain anonymous at this time, but their anonymity doesn’t detract from their ultimate mission. “Our goal is to give our students, faculty, and staff a place where we can celebrate the individuals who inspire us, but who would never hope to see mass media attention,” said an operator via an email interview.
The account hopes to promote Central York and the heroes within its walls.
Though there have been doubts, the operator assures that the account’s goals are pure: “Our overall message is one of school pride and hope. We’re tired of hearing rants and complaints about everything that is wrong. We’re not saying everything is perfect; we just want to shine a light on the people who, sometimes without even knowing it, are making a difference at our school.”
So far, it has had a slow start, but those who follow the account contribute to the hashtag “#realcyhsheroes” with stories of their heroes. The operator said, “We don’t know how people will react, but we hope that people will take the opportunity to spread kindness.”
However, there have been some who have opposed the account. “I think people misinterpreted our mission,” the operator said. “They saw what were are doing as a backhanded attempt to be disrespectful or to ride the coat tails of the media coverage. In reality, we simply want to make sure that one story doesn’t drown out the other amazing people and events at Central.”
And as to why they created the account in the first place? “We were concerned by the comments we saw and read regarding Central York. The picture being painted in the media isn’t the Central we know. We wanted to create a place where we could lift up all of the amazing people at our school,” the operator said.