Youth suicide: Death of Bathurst schoolgirl Matilda Rosewarne sparks call for change
The family of a 15-year-old who suicided after years of cruel torment from bullies are doing everything they can to ensure no other little girls share her fate.
NSW
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The family of a country teenager who suicided after years of cruel torment from bullies have spoken out on the day of her funeral, heartbroken there was no safety net to catch their little girl.
Bathurst schoolgirl Matilda “Tilly” Rosewarne, 15, lost her life to suicide in mid-February after what her parents have described as years of bullying, both online and in person.
As she was farewelled by family and friends at the Bathurst Harness Racing Club on Tuesday, her mother Emma Mason bravely spoke out about the need for change.
Ms Mason is calling for a zero tolerance approach to bullying and new measures such as the introduction of a mandatory database of students’ phone numbers at school.
“Tilly died from a thousand cuts that occurred over the course of her short life,” her mother Emma Mason told The Daily Telegraph. “From not being invited to parties to having fake nudes spread on social media,” she said.
“We want to do everything we can to make sure no other little humans go through this.”
Once a vibrant, kind teenager who loved to dance, paint and was a star debater, her mother says years of bullying led to her developing depression, anxiety and traits of borderline personality disorder.
“She was an innately kind, gentle, spirited child. Animals and kids would just gravitate to her. She had a really soft spirit and was an innately easy kid,” Ms Mason said.
The bullying started with her being excluded from events by her peers but escalated to cyber bullying and even death threats and suicide taunts, her mother said.
“They would say things like ‘you should kill yourself, you’re fat, you’re ugly,’” Ms Mason said.
One of the bullies circulated a fake nude image of Tilly on Snapchat and a Belgian porn website, which led to another suicide attempt.
A complaint was lodged with police, however, Ms Mason said police had “significant difficulties” confirming who the Snapchat account belonged to and ultimately, she decided to pull the investigation.
“By the time those events happened, she became really unwell and she didn’t want to do any more [police] interviews,” she said.
Before she took her life, she was seeing a psychiatrist and psychologist, but denied having suicidal thoughts, which her mother says meant she couldn’t be involuntarily admitted.
Ms Mason said before she suicided, a bully said to Tilly: “you didn’t kill yourself hard enough”. Days later, she was found dead.
Tilly’s family is now bravely pleading with authorites and parents that “something has to change”.
She is urging people to move past simple “policies” or observing events like R U OK Day and to have “real, hard conversations.”
“And finally to stress to our young people.... Every post you write, every image you share, every word you say, has an impact,” Ms Mason said.
eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant said one in five Australian children are bullied online, often with devastating outcomes.
“The insidious nature of online bullying means kids can’t just leave it at the front door, it follows them home from school and into their bedrooms,” she said.
Ms Inman Grant said reports of cyber bullying and image-based abuse can be lodged with and investigated by the eSafety Commissioner.
A spokesperson for NSW Police said officers attached to Chifley Police District have commenced an investigation into Tilly’s death on the behalf of the Coroner.
Snapchat was contacted for comment.
SOMETHING HAS TO CHANGE
Extract from the record of service prepared for the funeral of Tilly Rosewarne
Tilly’s death is certainly a tragedy and, although she died on February 16 2022, in reality her death was the result of a myriad of events, each of which cut into Tilly’s soul and destroyed who she believed herself to be.
Sadly, Tilly died from a thousand cuts that occurred over the course of her short life. From eight-year-old girls telling her they had all voted and it should have been her father who died (after the death of another “friend’s” father) to not being invited to various birthday parties that ‘everyone’ is at, and then having people ring, text and taunt her all night long from that same party.
To having fake ‘nudes’ being spread on social media; to meeting up with “friends” at the local shopping centre, only to have them harass her and verbally abuse her in public; to return to school from hospital to be shunned and marginalised as ‘too hot’ to handle.
These things and many others occurred both at school and outside of school.
The failures of multiple schools to appropriately manage bullying that had occurred on their school grounds, and by their students, reveals a systemic problem in our education system — where this behaviour is minimised as ‘uncontrollable’ as it occurs at recess or lunch, or more fundamentally excused because “they come from a good family”.
We share these examples (of which there are unfortunately many more) not to cast blame at any one person, or one school, but to plead with all our educators and parents that something has to change.
If anything can come from the loss of Tilly, we wish that our education system moves past the security of “having a policy” or observing “RU OK” days, to ensuring that real, hard conversations are had and that bullying behaviour is challenged and stopped; and that genuine repercussions are followed through.
And finally to stress to our young people ... Every post you write, every image you share, every word you say, has an impact.
We beg you, before you post, share or speak, ask yourself three questions: Is it true? Is it kind? Is it necessary?
If the answer is “No” to any of these questions, do not post, do not share or do not speak.We beg you.
Because no one ever knows when these actions are that human’s deepest cut ... or the last cut.
Reprinted with the permission of the Rosewarne Family.
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