Activism. A concept of change that was once built upon commitment, fearlessness and sheer will is no more. In a time where the presence of social media and the internet wasn’t a thing, being an activist wasn’t a social stunt, it was a means of living, a means of justification better put. The idea of activism meant standing up for what was right. In Malcom Gladwell’s, “Small Change” he shared a similar idea with his perception of activism being deemed as anything that challenges deeply rooted problems. But in a time were posting an awareness post for whatever the cause may be is deemed as activism I see a problem, because we’re putting a label on something that it isn’t. Being an activist for something means sacrificing your time, your livelihood, possibly even your life for something far bigger than yourself, not reposting an Instagram story to make it seem like you care about what’s going on without actually contributing something to the cause. It’s hard to identify true activist vs attention fiends but it angers me to believe that people are willing to put up this perception of care and awareness for something solely for social praise when theirs people out there who do it not for a like, not for a pat on the back or a good job, more so because fighting for what they believe in means something to them far beyond meaningless double taps.
When I think about activism and what it is today, I find myself with views similar to those of Gladwell. See activism and its true meaning has completely changed and it’s safe to say social media and the internet has been at fault for this. What once was a burning desire to create change has completely faded away because no one in today’s age is unselfish enough to put someone else’s needs before their own and I think Gladwell did a great job of presenting this idea that we’ve lost sight of what activism really means, in the text, he writes, “Fifty years after one of the most extraordinary episodes of social upheaval in American history, we seem to have forgotten what activism is.” (Gladwell 4). The events that Gladwell refers to, the protests started by four college students of North Carolina A. & T that would eventually cause a complete rebellion in the south, are true acts of activism. Why? Because what these four students started would be the beginning of social change and equality in a time where black and white didn’t always go together. What these four students did would not only challenge the unjustified beliefs of others but challenge their mental fortitude, courage, and belief that we as a society needed to be better. If I were asked to define activism, I’d define it as the acts of those four courageous students of North Carolina A. & T. Another thing I’d like to point out is that for what it’s worth, in today’s era of social media and internet takeover what we perceive as activism is mostly controlled by people seeking self-gratification. Looking back at past articles we’ve read I found a correlation in this idea between Sam Anderson and Gladwell. In Andersons, “In Defense of Distraction”, he writes, “Everyone still pays some form of attention all the time, of course it’s basically impossible for humans not to but the currency in which we pay it, and the goods we get in exchange, have changed drastically.” (Anderson 2) I mention this because the concept of activism hasn’t faded away but over time the authenticity of its purpose has completely changed. Before the presence of social media, being an activist meant fighting for something not knowing whether or not you’d get the credit for doing so, whereas now people portray this image of being “activists” with the intention of hopefully getting that attention they’re seeking so badly. Looking back, it’s just a shame that social media and the internet has had such a drastic effect on a concept that has brought upon so much change all over the world but especially in our own country.
Though I do believe that the idea of activism has changed over time due to the presence of social media, the one thing I believe still holds true is the feeling of empathy that surrounds the idea. See, to fight for something bigger than yourself, you must be moved by it, you have to be empowered because you realize that maybe this is something that directly involves you to bring about change. In Gladwell’s article, he mentions a story about a young entrepreneur by the name of Sameer Bhatia who was in need of a bone marrow transplant but couldn’t find a donor amongst his immediate family. Luckily enough, after starting a social media campaign in hopes of finding a donor, Bhatia found a match, but I felt as if Gladwell tried to belittle the courageous acts of the donor. In the text, Gladwell writes, “Donating bone marrow isn’t a trivial matter. But it doesn’t involve financial or personal risks; it doesn’t mean spending a summer being chased by armed men in pickup trucks. It doesn’t require that you confront socially entrenched norms and practices. In fact, it’s the kind of commitment that will bring only social acknowledgement and praise.” (Gladwell 8) I mentioned that being an activist for something meant sacrificing your time, your livelihood, possibly even your life for something far bigger than yourself and though this may not be the form of activism that changes the lives of thousands, it’s the type of activism that changes one life and if your any form of a good-human being, you understand what this could mean to someone and their family. It’s important to note this idea of empathy because creates a direct correlation to the ideas presented by Sherry Turkle in her article, “The Empathy Diaries”. To want to fight for someone or something, you must be moved by them/it but that requires listening, it requires being understanding of the fact that what you may be fighting for might not directly change your life but can change the life of so many other people. Turkle did a great job of presenting this idea of being understood in the text where she writes, “Fully present to one another, we learn to listen. It’s where we develop the capacity for empathy. It’s where we experience the joy of being heard, of being understood.” (Turkle 344) I myself have never understood what it’s like to be an activists for anything but what I do know is that being understood means something to people and in the context of activism, it could mean the world for someone because whether you join them in their fight or not at least they know what they’re fighting for holds value in the world.
In a time where social media and the internet are practically the bearer of our decisions it’s hard to differentiate true activist from those seeking attention but regardless of the fact, we must remind ourselves that activism is the idea of fighting for something bigger than yourself. Being a true activist means being courageous enough to contribute to a cause that might change the lives of those around you forever. All things considered, Gladwell did a great job of expressing his views on activism and how it has changed over the years in the presence of social media. Some do it because they care and some do it because they fiend for attention in their lives and in some cases that might be fine but in the discussion of activism and what it stands for, it’s not right. Social media and the internet have taken over practically everything we know of in this life, but if there’s one thing we can’t let it do, it’s let it be the deciding factor in fighting for everything we believe in.
