#Activism

I want you to reflect on some of the examples we have of hashtag activism–from the readings for today, plus whatever case studies your classmates might have found. How effective a tool do you think social media is for political activism? Are there certain features that make hashtag activism more or less effective?

Political activism. It has taken many different forms over the years, with the most recent incarnation being that of the utilization of the internet and even more so specifically the use of hashtags on social media. With a hashtag users are able to rally behind a short and succinct message that can really gain momentum when enough people begin to use the same hashtag. There are both good and bad aspects of this model of activism though, its not just a simple positive rallying cry. With the hashtag generation we find that a lot of times there is some level on context that gets lost in translation when trying to rally behind a cause using a hashtag. Using the example from the NYTimes video it discussed how #SolidarityIsForWhiteWomen became a very divisive hashtag because although the intent behind the hashtag was to direct a powerful feminist movement, it made it seem like those that were using the hashtag completely ignored there are plenty of other women of different races that face the same exact issues that white women were taking issue with (in some cases even more so). Now I am not going to sit here and try and judge whether something like that was done intentionally or not, but what I can say it that it shows how even when the intentions are good, a hashtag presents its own sets of obstacles that if you are not familiar with the platform, can get a user into trouble.

On the other hand there are some ways that using hashtags as a way of political activism can have a profound effect on society. The #MeToo movement is a prime example of that. Its a clear and concise hashtag that doesn’t have hardly any ambiguity to it. It creates a place where women (and more recently men as well) can share their bad experiences in a cathartic way to shed a light on a really horrible aspect of our society that needs to change. Even 10 years ago when the internet was in full swing something like #MeToo was nowhere to be found in the mainstream areas of the internet. You had to seek out forums or obscure websites to find a safe place to shed the burden of something like that. Having the ability to connect with so many people and trend a topic like sexual assault on a medium that pretty much at this point most internet users have really brings that taboo topic to the forefront to be able to address it head on.

Ultimately I believe that #activism is a great tool to have in our arsenal. It helps to galvanize a population on a given topic and that is as good a use of the internet as one can use.