However, there's one village in France that's taking a bold stance against this trend by banning public scrolling. Their goal? To reduce overall screen time and encourage more face-to-face interaction among residents.
From The Guardian:
A picture of a smartphone with a red line through it serves as a warning in the window of a hairdresser’s shop in a French village that has voted to ban people scrolling on their phones in public. “Everyone is struggling with too much screen time,” said Ludivine, a cardiology nurse, as she had her hair cut into a bob, leaving her phone out of sight in her bag. “I voted in favour, this could be a solution.”
Seine-Port, in the Seine-et-Marne area south of Paris, with a population of fewer than 2,000 people, last weekend voted yes in a referendum to restrict smartphone use in public, banning adults and children from scrolling on their devices while walking down the street, while sitting with others on a park bench, while in shops, cafes or eating in restaurants and while parents wait for their children in front of the school gates. Those who might check their phone’s map when lost are instead being encouraged to ask for directions.
The village has also approved a charter for families on children’s use of screens: no screens of any kind in the morning, no screens in bedrooms, no screens before bed or during meals. If parents of teenagers sign a written agreement not to give their child a smartphone before the age of 15, the town hall will provide the child with an old-fashioned handset for calls only.
“I’m totally in favour of this,” said Ludivine, 34, who has two children aged one and four. “Some say it’s an attack on freedoms but I don’t think so. It’s about raising awareness of the impact of phones in our lives.
“My one-year-old has zero screens. My four-year-old has no screens on a school day, and only ever for a short moment while the youngest is napping. A lot of children and adults are intoxicated by screens – even babies in pushchairs scroll phones. This is about replacing that with more human contact. Before I had children, my TV was always on in the background; now I never switch it on.”
I don't know about you, but when it comes to cutting down on my phone time, I'd prefer to do it on my own terms, not because some local government is forcing me to.
This kind of "nanny" style of governance only breeds more frustration and conflict among residents. I forsee this entire ban eventually going south.
