Just sharing a hashtag isn't enough
Social media has arguably become an intrinsic part of our daily lives. I’ll leave it up to you to decide whether that’s a good thing. Sites like Twitter and Instagram have already played large roles in mobilising the 'Black Lives Matter' movement by allowing users to share their opinions, accounts and resources with the world - for free. Despite its large reach, I would argue that social media has, in some ways, been detrimental to making the changes that we need to make society better for everybody.
Since the death of George Floyd, on the 25th of May, Instagram users have been tagging 10 friends in a story (a post which lasts only 24 hours) to show that they support 'Black Lives Matter' and want to spread the word. On 2 June #BlackoutTuesday swept across the screens of every social media user as millions of people, including celebrities and well-known companies, posted a picture of a black square, to show solidarity. It was a day to take a break from social media and reflect on black injustice and the many who have lost their lives because of it. However, this created a very literal problem as many included #BlackLivesMatter as well as #BlackoutTuesday in their post. Consequently, resources and ways to donate, which also used the hashtag, were blocked out with a formidable wall of black squares. For me, this is a paradigm of a much wider problem.
The issue lies with the simplicity and ease of sharing something on social media. It encourages people to follow the crowd without fully comprehending what the message means for them, or what else they can do to help; it is quite literally the least you can do. I think it’s important to question if social media posts will actually make voices heard. Signing petitions, donating to charities, attending protests and contacting authorities all provide more traction than posting a black square.
Racism lies latent in society, often subtle, and is only put under scrutiny when something makes the headlines. Social media posts provide a facade for the tangible changes that need to happen - creating the illusion of widespread understanding. I’m not trying to tell you to stop showing your support on social media; it provides a great platform for spreading awareness and resources which would otherwise take much more effort to find. Despite showing our immense desire for change, social media is nothing more than a catalyst for transformations which should have happened a long time ago.
Social media’s pretence is particularly relevant to teenagers. Secondary schools with a predominantly white community have found it hard to curb racism, most notably in the form of ‘banter’. This is compounded by the ‘modern taboo’ that has formed around racial discussions.
“The young people in these schools are largely unaware of their own constructions of race and racism, and, despite racism being seen by both the students and teachers as unacceptable, practices of racism are accepted. It can be argued that the students’ understandings of what racism is actually run counter to how they ‘do race’. Their everyday speech and actions create a space where BME pupils are tolerated, but have to endure a level of everyday racism.” (Bennett & Lee-Treweek, 2014)
Racist undercurrents will persist unless concrete actions are taken at a curriculum level, and by individuals. Social media posts, such as #BlackoutTuesday, only allow users to blend in and follow the net movement. Seemingly small improvements to society will form a whole which is worth more than the sum of its parts.
“The power of the unspoken also frames the very real jeopardy for BME students of challenging racism in school: they risk unpopularity and social exclusion by going up against powerful tacit societal assumptions.” (Bennett & Lee-Treweek, 2014)
I believe that social media serves a much better purpose for individuals to bring attention to their own personal injustices, than the collective ‘band-wagoning’ we have seen following periods of racial tension. For example, Social media and the #MeToo movement provided a platform for individuals to speak freely about past experiences, which they may not have felt free to speak about prior to social media.
Social media is a driving-force for galvanising actions in support of a movement. But, in itself, is not the action which will change precedents, mindsets and the lives of those facing discrimination.
I highly recommend reading Julia Bennett and Geraldine Lee-Trework’s 2014 paper titled ‘Doing Race: how secondary school pupils in mainly white schools construct ‘race’ (https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.2304/power.2014.6.1.32). They explain racism in secondary schools far better than I ever could.
By Joe Goodsell, Y10
Since the death of George Floyd, on the 25th of May, Instagram users have been tagging 10 friends in a story (a post which lasts only 24 hours) to show that they support 'Black Lives Matter' and want to spread the word. On 2 June #BlackoutTuesday swept across the screens of every social media user as millions of people, including celebrities and well-known companies, posted a picture of a black square, to show solidarity. It was a day to take a break from social media and reflect on black injustice and the many who have lost their lives because of it. However, this created a very literal problem as many included #BlackLivesMatter as well as #BlackoutTuesday in their post. Consequently, resources and ways to donate, which also used the hashtag, were blocked out with a formidable wall of black squares. For me, this is a paradigm of a much wider problem.
The issue lies with the simplicity and ease of sharing something on social media. It encourages people to follow the crowd without fully comprehending what the message means for them, or what else they can do to help; it is quite literally the least you can do. I think it’s important to question if social media posts will actually make voices heard. Signing petitions, donating to charities, attending protests and contacting authorities all provide more traction than posting a black square.
Racism lies latent in society, often subtle, and is only put under scrutiny when something makes the headlines. Social media posts provide a facade for the tangible changes that need to happen - creating the illusion of widespread understanding. I’m not trying to tell you to stop showing your support on social media; it provides a great platform for spreading awareness and resources which would otherwise take much more effort to find. Despite showing our immense desire for change, social media is nothing more than a catalyst for transformations which should have happened a long time ago.
Social media’s pretence is particularly relevant to teenagers. Secondary schools with a predominantly white community have found it hard to curb racism, most notably in the form of ‘banter’. This is compounded by the ‘modern taboo’ that has formed around racial discussions.
“The young people in these schools are largely unaware of their own constructions of race and racism, and, despite racism being seen by both the students and teachers as unacceptable, practices of racism are accepted. It can be argued that the students’ understandings of what racism is actually run counter to how they ‘do race’. Their everyday speech and actions create a space where BME pupils are tolerated, but have to endure a level of everyday racism.” (Bennett & Lee-Treweek, 2014)
Racist undercurrents will persist unless concrete actions are taken at a curriculum level, and by individuals. Social media posts, such as #BlackoutTuesday, only allow users to blend in and follow the net movement. Seemingly small improvements to society will form a whole which is worth more than the sum of its parts.
“The power of the unspoken also frames the very real jeopardy for BME students of challenging racism in school: they risk unpopularity and social exclusion by going up against powerful tacit societal assumptions.” (Bennett & Lee-Treweek, 2014)
I believe that social media serves a much better purpose for individuals to bring attention to their own personal injustices, than the collective ‘band-wagoning’ we have seen following periods of racial tension. For example, Social media and the #MeToo movement provided a platform for individuals to speak freely about past experiences, which they may not have felt free to speak about prior to social media.
Social media is a driving-force for galvanising actions in support of a movement. But, in itself, is not the action which will change precedents, mindsets and the lives of those facing discrimination.
I highly recommend reading Julia Bennett and Geraldine Lee-Trework’s 2014 paper titled ‘Doing Race: how secondary school pupils in mainly white schools construct ‘race’ (https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.2304/power.2014.6.1.32). They explain racism in secondary schools far better than I ever could.
By Joe Goodsell, Y10