Hashtag Activism
Hashtag activism is a term that first entered the public consciousness when New York Times columnist David Carr (2012) wrote of the phenomenon. Hashtag activism has made it possible to raise awareness and foster discussions about specific issues via social media. Nancy Ngo (2015) means the practise of hashtag activism has simply “gained both widespread media attention for shining a spotlight on issues, including gun control policy and human rights abuses, while also drawing criticism for its limitations”. More recently, the following hashtags became the top trending topic on Twitter and elsewhere on social media following a spark in conversation in the U.S and globally. Hashtags that created a ‘call to action’ includes #NotMyPresident, #BlackLivesMatters, #Trump, #Racism, #HurricaneMaria and #PuertoRico.
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According to Evan Asano part of the rise in hashtag activism could be attributed to the new president who may be a catalyst for “driving political discussions, further fueling activism and spurring mainstream awareness” (Buxton:2017). Evidently, four out of the six hashtags mentioned above are directed towards the President “because few movements have affected as many people simultaneously as Trump's agenda” (Wenzke:2017).
Another example of hashtag activism that captured the attention of the media and the world is that of #BlackLivesMatter. In 2013, Alicia Garza launched this hashtag to call an end to police brutality and the killings of African-Americans. According Garza (2014), “it was a response to the anti-Black racism that permeates society and also, unfortunately, our
Immediately following this summarization, she jumps right into her accusatory tone, using the terms “soft outrage” and “hashtag activism” to explain what celebrities are doing by posting about these events on their various social media sites. Cupp coins the term early on in her article, retorting “… one only needs to look back at some recent examples of other horrifying atrocities to know that mere symbolism and solidarity -- what I call the weapons of "soft outrage" -- will not be enough to stamp out terrorism in Europe or anywhere else (par. 7). Later, she adds another made-up term into reader’s vocabulary, “hashtag activism.” She defines this by commenting “even though [#BringBackOurGirls] went viral… hashtag activism hasn 't proven very effective in the face of violent Islamic extremism” (Cupp, par.
The article is socially relevant in two ways. Firstly, the hashtag was on one of the most popular and widely used social media platfo...
The Black Lives Matter Movement was started as a hash tag after the death of Travon Marten. Its founders Patrisse Cullors, Opal Tometi, and Alicia Garza helped it grow into a movement. Unlike the Black Panther Party of the 1960s this group is not calling for the black community to pick up arms. However, like the Black Panther Party of the 1960’s the media has shown members of this group standing toe to toe with
Throughout history, social movements have continuously formed because of a person who had the courage to stand up against the injustice they witnessed in every day live. When I was a child, I remember feeling as if it takes a superhero-like person to start a social movement. However, I have found that through the use of social media today, any person with a passion for making a change can spark a social movement. Social movements are a powerful way to help people believe that their voice matters and they should stand up for what they believe in. Before the advancement of technology, it took a lot longer for social movements to become prominent in society’s media outlets because of the difficulties of not having enough time in one’s life to
The newly formed, Black Lives Matter movement, campaigns against violence towards black people. BLM regularly organizes protests around the deaths of black people in killings by law enforcement officers, racial profiling, police brutality, and inequality in the U.S. criminal justice system. The movement was the brain child of Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors, and Opal Tometi that sprouted from the hash tag #BlackLivesMatter after the acquittal of George Zimmerman. BLM became nationally known for its street demonstrations following the deaths of two Black Americans: Michael Brown (Ferguson, Missouri) and Eric Garner (NYC, New York). However, unlike the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960’s, the Black Lives Matter movement is a decentralized network that has no formal structure. In a modern age where news spreads like wild fire, social media is the new base for discussion on racial bias, not only in the legal system, but rather, in society as a whole. Its because of this that the Black Lives Matter movement has been able gain immense support from the younger population and has been able to grow in such a short period of time. (Garcia, 2015.). In the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement social media movement, the “All Lives Matter” movement gained headway as well. The Black Lives Matter campaign pertains particularly to
This movement is called “Black Lives Matter”. The people who were responsible for the creation of this hashtag, which then expanded to be a movement, were three women: Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors, and Opal Tometi. The way that the people are being used in this topic area is that it implies this notion. In this topic area, “Black Lives Matter” refers to African-Americans who are treated unfairly and blamed for the things that doesn’t have anything to do with them.
If the founding fathers didn’t stand up for the things they believed in we would have never separated from Britain and established our own country. However, today it seems like retweeting a cause you believe in or watching the new makes people think they are politically active or active in a cause. For example, “These days, however, most Americans think that just sending out a tweet or a social media post counts as advocacy” (Schwartz 1). When in reality they never had to leave the comfort of there home to make this stand. But, studies do also show that the more active people on social media for a cause may actually be more likely to get involved with the cause even farther and take action. “ But while calling yourself an activist for sending out a supportive tweet seems a little lazy, there are indications in the study that social media posts do translate to more involved behavior”(Schwartz 1). Depending on perspectives mass media can either hurt or help people will to stand up for their
While many people throughout the world see social media as a trendy new application in the service of personal amusement, the political upheavals in the Arab world have shown how it can change the dynamics of modern day activism. The Arab Spring Uprising interlaced social unrest with a technological revolution. Blogs, news websites, twitter feeds, and political list servers became avenues for communication, information flow and solidarity. Being capable of sharing an immense amount of uncensored information through social media sites has contributed to the success of many Arab Spring activists. Social media played a role in facilitating the events of the Arab Spring, but the main issues are rooted in a broader set of economic, political, and social factors. This paper will examine how social media impacted the Arab Spring Uprising. Specifically, I will look at how social media introduced a novel resource that helped to created internet activist communities, changed the dynamics of social mobilization and revolutionized interactions between protesters and the rest of the world.
Social movements come and go; they represent all manner of political aspirations, and aim to achieve their political objectives by influencing a particular target group’s opinion. Some groups reach out directly to just a few key decision makers or constituencies, while others act more indirectly by broadcasting their message to as wide an audience as possible. Popular forms of social media have played a significant influence in social movements throughout the last few years. Two prominent examples are Ai Weiwei’s use of the social platform: Twitter, and the use of Yik Yak at the University of Missouri. Social movements rely on the media for the mobilization of political support, validation in the mainstreams discourse, and opportunity to broaden
This summer if you were on social media you heard about the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. The concept was simple, just film yourself dumping a bucket of ice water over your head, challenge your friends to do the same, and donate ten dollars to the ALS Association. Opt out and donate one hundred dollars (Madison). Many Americans did not know what ALS was and by putting this challenge on social media has brought tons awareness to this devastating disease. Activism used to be taking action to bring social change, people in the 1960s used to gather in front of community centers and protest and or speak about their issue or cause. Now even though people still gather together it is much easier to use the internet. Hundreds of social media applications
Black Lives Matter is not a bandwagon to hop on, nor is it a hashtag or a slogan. Black Lives Matter is a movement. To not support the movement or to think that the movement does not need support is outright depraved, demeaning and degrading. We too often think that retweeting, tweeting or sharing a photo on social media is supporting the movement and it’s not! This is no longer the 1960’s. We have gained our rights: that is no longer the fight. The fight is receiving justice for our black people, so no effective protesting is no longer sitting at countertops, it is no longer peaceful marching and it is no longer bus boycotting The new protest is to educate ourselves, to show respect, to get involved in the justice system, to raise black lawyers, to vote and to do jury duty. All of these things are needed to benefit the movement in stopping the corruptness in our justice system.
The Arab Spring has impacted multiple countries in northern Africa and the Arab world so far since the end of December 2010, leading to the fall of the government in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya and Yemen. Among the unarmed insurrections, social media and social networking technology functioned as a new strategy that empowered the protesters to gain successful uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt and inspired grassroots movements in other Arab countries. The new media, namely Twitter, Facebook and Youtube, with online blogs and mobile telecommunications, played a significant role in the politics of connectivity, which connect, coordinate and communicate the protestors. Labeled as “Twitter Revolution” or “Facebook Revolution”, the new media to some extent engaged in the Arab Spring uprisings. By analyzing more than three million tweets on Twitter, content on YouTube and thousands of blog posts, a study led by analysts from the University of Washington finds that social media played a critical role in shaping political debates in the movements during the Arab Spring.
Social media activism has no sense of organization or leadership. According to Gladwell, “Networks don’t have a centralized leadership structure and clear lines of authority, they have real difficulty reaching consensus and setting goals (Gladwell).” Organizations find agreeing and establishing goals problematic. Not having the ability to set specific goals and complete them effectively leaves networks vulnerable. Using social media lacks the organization required to properly execute an aim for a group. It is quite obvious that since anyone can take part in social media sites and simply the vast number of people online; it would complicate anything that they were trying to achieve. Working even in small groups of people can create difficulty. Social media increases the number of people. So using social media as a platform for activism can prevent change from
He also noted that White people in Coldville refuse to believe in racism (2008:121). Anthropologists Rosemarie Roberts, Lee Bell, and Brett Murphy report on the experiences of youth in the New York City education system. With social media being one of the most efficient ways to disseminate news, stories of unfairness towards people of color have been brought to light and commented on by many. The recent social media theme titled “#BlackLivesMatter” has been both positively and negatively received. This hashtag was created in response to the violence shown towards hundreds of Black people in the Southern states of America.
Not sure about the proper use and creation of hashtags, check out this post. Remember, when it comes to #hashtags the point is to get a conversation started. Through planned expectations and a catchy #hashtag have influencers ask their followers to join in the