Tompkins Square Park in New York, a site once iconic for anti-war protests in the 1960s, played host to a different kind of countercultural gathering on Friday this time aimed at resisting social media. Called “Delete Day,” the event was organized by several Gen Z-led groups urging young people to remove addictive social apps from their lives, starting with simply deleting them from their phones.
True to its message, the event was not advertised on social media. Instead, information about it spread through word-of-mouth and offline methods. Participants learned about it via physical flyers, friend circles, and quiet organizing a throwback to a time before likes and follows dictated awareness. As people passed by in outfits seemingly curated for Instagram, organizers greeted them with chalk signs that read things like “Delete your apps on the grass.” They handed out hand-drawn stickers and printed pamphlets detailing how to back up personal data before removing apps like Instagram. Once ready, attendees sat on picnic blankets on the grass, surrounded by glow lights, candles, and even a living room lamp creating an inviting, screen-free atmosphere.
Around 80 people showed up. The event included a few short speeches from organizers, a communal app deletion moment, and a no-phones hangout. Nick Plante, 25, a speaker and one of the organizers focused on “attention activism,” said the event’s tone was designed to be hopeful, not judgmental. He described it as a sign that society is reaching a tipping point. “We’ve realized how drained we are, how overstimulated by screens, and we’re taking stronger, shared steps toward a more lasting change.”
Many Gen Zers, shaped by high school and college years spent largely behind screens during the pandemic, are beginning to push back. Delete Day brought together groups like Appstinence, a movement launched at Harvard by graduate student Gabriela Nguyen, and the Reconnect Movement, led by Seán Killingsworth, which promotes phone-free clubs at high schools and universities. Other participants included modern-day Luddite-inspired groups and the Lamp Club, a student group from Eugene Lang College that encourages in-person socializing and notably, avoids harsh overhead lighting in favor of cozy lamps. These groups invited friends, roommates, and even strangers they’d met through tabling efforts across the city.
In some cases, outreach was as simple as someone sitting at a picnic table with a sign that read, “I don’t have a smartphone. Ask me a question.” Killingsworth said these street-level efforts sparked meaningful conversations and helped spread the word. Nguyen noted the goal wasn’t to go viral or reach millions, but rather to profoundly impact a few people at a time. During the event, speakers shared personal stories about growing up with social media from struggling with school distractions to feeling constantly self-conscious. Nguyen admitted that, like many others, she had canceled on friends simply because staying home with her devices felt easier. “It’s the kiss of death to the social fabric,” she said.
The movement backing Delete Day is known as Time to Refuse, which promotes smartphone abstinence and app deletion. Though it is led by Gen Zers, it has gained support from prominent voices like Jonathan Haidt, author of “The Anxious Generation,” a 2024 book linking adolescent mental health issues with smartphone use. Since its release, the book has inspired phone bans in schools across the U.S., while tech companies face mounting lawsuits for allegedly fueling a mental health crisis.
Haidt promoted Delete Day on his Substack newsletter, After Babel, which also features contributions from writers like Freya India. India, who recently joined After Babel as a staff writer, is known for her GIRLS newsletter that focuses on how platforms like TikTok have negatively impacted young women. She reflected on the anxiety and dissonance she once felt when heavily engaged online especially around posting selfies. Now, by enforcing personal rules like not sharing her image online, she feels more liberated. “You go to an event and you don’t have to take pictures for Instagram. You don’t have to market your life,” she said.
Others at the event echoed this desire to reclaim their mental space. One speaker asked everyone to place their phone on their heads and reflect on how long that “poison” had seeped into their brains since age 13, perhaps, when they downloaded Instagram, or later. “But enough is enough,” they said. After a countdown, participants deleted their app of choice Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, X, Facebook, LinkedIn, Reddit, or others. Cheers erupted when one attendee shouted, “I deleted Hinge!”
Still, quitting social media is easier said than done. The immediate loss of connection, even if it was shallow, can be difficult. That’s why Delete Day emphasized positive alternatives real-world interactions, hobbies, and physical connection. Attendees were given phone pouches and name tags. Some wrote short conversation prompts on their tags to help spark spontaneous chats with strangers. A representative from Brooklyn-based tech company Light even offered a free Light Phone a minimalist device that strips out apps and internet browsing in favor of basic communication tools like calls, texts, and maps.
While Light Phones and the Time to Refuse movement are far from mainstream, organizers said they’re not trying to scale like a startup. Their focus is building genuine communities. Delete Day is expected to expand to cities like Philadelphia, London, and even Nairobi as local volunteers step up to host their own versions. Many attendees said that meaningful offline activities helped them resist digital distractions. Judy Liu, 25, a volunteer at the event, said she now spends her time learning Mandarin and pursuing other hobbies.
Kanika Mehra, 24, runs a Washington D.C. initiative called Airplane Mode, which promotes offline connection in public “third spaces.” For her, the solution isn’t just deleting an app it’s building and nurturing community. “Ultimately, when you experience real life and real connection, social media is not a compelling alternative,” she said.
