PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Norma Nazario, Mother of Zachary, on Subway Surfing Dangers
2:56:29
·
10 min
Norma Nazario, mother of Zachary who died in a subway surfing accident, provides emotional testimony about the dangers of subway surfing and the role of social media in promoting this risky behavior. She criticizes the MTA's efforts to prevent subway surfing and calls for more action from both transit authorities and social media companies.
- Nazario shares personal details about her son Zachary, including his interests and aspirations.
- She emphasizes the role of social media algorithms in exposing young people to dangerous content and calls for stricter content moderation.
- Nazario advocates for improved security measures by the MTA, such as locking doors between subway cars and installing alarms to prevent access to dangerous areas.
Norma Nazario
2:56:29
Now?
2:56:30
Hi.
2:56:31
I don't know if it's morning or afternoon, or morning.
2:56:36
Before I tell a story about mister Zach, I call him mister Zach.
2:56:41
I don't know if I'm allowed to comment on everything that I've heard this morning, whether it's that NYPD, the MTA is no longer here, and, the Department of Education.
2:56:54
So before I tell the story, I want to say that unfortunately, some or most of those statements that the MTA mentioned, unfortunately, they're not accurate.
2:57:07
Just last night and every other night, since Zach passed away, I received subway surfing videos.
2:57:15
Also, I know social media is the number one, but social media could be easily banned.
2:57:21
It could be easily blocked.
2:57:23
The MTA is physical.
2:57:25
MTA could do a lot more than social media.
2:57:28
Unfortunately, they'd be able to do, like I said, since Zack passed away, you could close the doors when there's an emergency, you could have them open.
2:57:36
That's the only way that they can subway serve.
2:57:40
They kept on stating that, they're going to put the cameras is hard and all that, and it's not.
2:57:47
It's really not, I'm sorry.
2:57:48
With that being said, I also wanted to, also, be aware of what a couple of people mentioned that this has been happening for decades now, it's just not now.
2:58:03
And the MTA got only statements, only statements and announcements.
2:58:07
They need to do action because, Zach didn't die in vain.
2:58:11
I mean, unfortunately, social media is the number one, but MTA couldn't, was able to do better knowing that it was about 30 years this year.
2:58:22
Okay, so going forward, I know that I sound like a broken record, every time that I speak about Zac and and how he was and the subway surfing and social media and all that, but the MTA sounded like a subway I'm sorry.
2:58:38
MTA sound like a broken record also in social media as well.
2:58:41
And the video is still up, and MTA have not done anything.
2:58:46
When I sound like a broken record, it's to avoid, other parents to sit here like I am and for other kids to lose their lives.
2:58:55
So moving forward, again, I'm sorry.
2:58:58
My name is Norman Azario, and I'm Zachary's mom.
2:59:02
Zach was an amazing son.
2:59:04
He was so smart, funny, and he had many friends.
2:59:08
And and I think also, now that I'm talking about friends, I thank also, Ms.
2:59:12
Rivera and the Clinton School at Zachary School for coming.
2:59:17
They did a plaque, and the plaque is in the school.
2:59:20
He was an also and his favorite music was Nat, King Cole, and Frank Sinatra, which I played in his funeral.
2:59:29
Zack was also looking forward to serving his country by joining the Marines after high school graduation.
2:59:36
Zack always had an interest in history, and his teachers called him the historian.
2:59:41
I loved learning new things from Zach.
2:59:44
Zach especially loved to research the history of New York and the New York subway system.
2:59:51
Zach's interest in New York history led to him being targeted by TikTok and Instagram's algorithms.
3:00:00
For those of you who do not know how an algorithm works on social media, he sees that you like particular content content and gives you more of it.
3:00:11
If you continue watching, the algorithm will continuously feed you like being in an all you can eat buffet, unfortunately.
3:00:19
Zack's interest in the New York subway system led him to see subway train so, sorry, see subway train surfing videos on TikTok and Instagram.
3:00:29
And then Zach constantly bombarded with the same type of subway surfing content, all powered by TikTok and Instagram's algorithms.
3:00:39
I often monitored Zach's phone and he even shared with me harmless videos and funny pictures he saw online, but I had no idea he was being shown subway surfing videos or that he would attempt to subway surf at all.
3:00:55
And on February 20, 2023, I was blindsided when the NYPD detectives came to my home to tell me that my son had died in a subway surfing accident.
3:01:06
I believe the dangerous subway surfing we're seeing in New York is made worse by social media.
3:01:13
Social media can have a detrimental impact on the mental health of our young people.
3:01:19
It leads to feeling of inadequacy.
3:01:22
Sorry.
3:01:23
Hiding levels of anxiety and depression and a fear of missing out, like the school was mentioning of missing out.
3:01:31
My son, Zach, developed some of these traits himself because of social media, but I couldn't imagine he would die by being influenced seeing so we surfing on Instagram and TikTok.
3:01:41
Even though the MTA pushes initiatives to tell kids not to sew with surf, like I was mentioned earlier, young people have have complete access to unlock subway doors and other access points that no alarms and other systems in place to keep them out.
3:02:00
Zach was shown exactly how to easily access dangerous areas in the MTA system and encouraged to do so on TikTok and Instagram.
3:02:10
He Zach has a, a horn in his drawer that I found, and how did he get that horn?
3:02:19
How, I also saw a video, unfortunately.
3:02:22
He was twisting the sidewalk and picked up the thing and just went under the tracks.
3:02:28
You know, MTA, I heard everything that they said, and I'm glad that you guys is having this, but MTA is really not doing what they're supposed to do.
3:02:37
I'm sorry.
3:02:38
Not only because I saw low Zach, it's just because of what I've been shown and what I know, in fact, that I have videos and stuff and it's it's it's outrageous.
3:02:47
I urge parents to keep their children off social media as much as possible and talk to them about the dangers of subway surfing.
3:02:54
What parents see on social media is not much different than what children see on social media.
3:02:59
I am here today holding Saks Funeral card.
3:03:03
No matter, no mother should have to carry their child's federal card with them.
3:03:12
The MTA needs to have systems in place like alarms, like they were saying, they don't have alarms, they don't they don't wanna lock the doors, and, you know, to keep children from doing so.
3:03:25
Accessing the tops and sides of the train.
3:03:28
Social media companies need to immediately remove subway surfing, and I mentioned, they sound like a a broken record, and they're not removing anything because I receive them all the time.
3:03:37
The MTA is just saying about stop.
3:03:40
Talk to your friends doing this.
3:03:41
It's not enough.
3:03:43
So we're surfing contact and stop pushing these trends to our children.
3:03:47
And we at Citi need and you guys, thank you, need to take this danger seriously and warn both children and parents of the consequences of SOWIE surfing.
3:03:57
I wish I didn't have to be here today, but I hope change will come so that what happened to Zach doesn't happen again to any other kid.
3:04:06
One last thing I wanna say is that Zach has so much, to offer to this world.
3:04:12
He was the light of my life, and I really hope that you guys count me to to to stop this not only for me, but other parents and all the kids.
3:04:25
I'm sorry.
3:04:27
And I thank you and thank the NYPD for the, for the drones.
3:04:33
I really wish that they would have done that before Zach passed away.
3:04:37
It's a great thing.
3:04:38
The MTA is just, they need to do, they need to do their information is inadequate, I'm sorry.
3:04:45
I thank the school, the school.
3:04:46
I'm looking forward also to, to be with the schools and I could go and speak with them.
3:04:53
I also want to, say the last thing that, thanks for having me.
3:04:58
And, I really hope that you guys can help to have this done.
3:05:02
I've been advocating for a year 9 months.
3:05:06
It's going to be in 2 days, 20th that he passed away.
3:05:10
And, I've been with the MAMA Organization, with the Common Sense Organization.
3:05:14
I've been in the White House.
3:05:16
I've been everywhere.
3:05:18
Thanks to her that she signed the 2 bills for, kid safety act and the data protection for the kids.
3:05:27
And, so I thank her and I thank everyone for having me today, and you could hear my story, and I don't want to pinpoint and put on the spot to no one, but, you know, it is what it is.
3:05:37
And if I'm still receiving these videos and every time that a kid dies, that's the first thing that when I open my phone, it's like, you know, we see you out there, you advocating and everything, but nothing is happening.
3:05:49
This keeps on dying.
3:05:51
And, you know, I'm not saying that I'm not doing.
3:05:54
I'm trying my best to do, if, you know, I need more help like you guys.
3:05:59
I need MTA to really do a change.
3:06:03
Like I said, it's simple, just I've been in trains, I call them the orange trains.
3:06:08
Those doors have been locked for many, many years, and nobody had passed away, nobody had died within the card system because the doors weren't open.
3:06:17
So they easily can close them.
3:06:19
There's an emergency, open them.
3:06:21
That's all I'm asking for you guys, to to help me here and to help all the other parents and for the kids not to, you know, I I really thought that after I started advocating, I didn't hear for Nomosa with surfing kids, but then it started again.
3:06:35
And I said, oh, my gosh, well, what happened with the social media?
3:06:38
What's going on with MTA?
3:06:42
So I'm sorry for the, emotion.
3:06:44
And and, if you have any questions, I I could
