This article discusses how with the use of technology we are able to connect with the world and globalize any social movement. In this case, with the use of Facebook, Vine, Instagram, and Twitter we are now able to mobilize an entire social media in the blink of an eye with immediate raw information. In the 60s during the social movement, they needed organized institutions and it required much more effort to create a social movement to bring an awareness to the social issues of the time, thus it required such big efforts like the Montgomery Boycott that had to be organized to create a reason and an example of the social issues that Blacks had to face back in the 60s. This was all because of the lack of tech. they had back then, and needing of really organized and established institution.
The connection between this article and that of black social movement, is that Black Lives Matter is still a social movement that is trying to address the social issues faced today by the black community. We see constant videos of police brutality, racist acts and mistreat of blacks being uploaded online everyday bringing us awareness of what is happening in the world. With this live and instant information, the social movement is much more rapid compared to that in the 60s. It is able to organize and summon people to the streets for a protest or march almost immediately, where as before it would require so much more organization and efforts to get the word out. Much like before, although both social movements fought for equally for the black community, it led to increase exposure of racism and those who opposed this social movement. Today we can see that in pages promoting and activist for the black lives matter movement, will receive threats and racist comments on the posts they create or videos they upload. Much like in the 60s, crosses, houses would be burned or assaulting of people of color. However, with this use of technology we bring a bigger since of community, and globalize the efforts made by these social movements that address Black Civil rights.
I agree that the rise of social media has had a positive effect on the social movements of today. People are able to organize and connect to others with the same beliefs much easier. It also helps to show the world what is going on without relying on the news to report. One of the best ways to stifle a movement is to deny its existence, which is much harder now that almost everyone has access to them through social media.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with you Brian. Many of the different types of social movements today gain tons of support through Social Media. Since people are always on Social Media it is a great thing to use to spread awareness for certain causes. People are able get in contact with more people on Social Media than anything I know. A huge one is Twitter. When major issues pop up on Twitter most of the time they will start trending which allows everyone to see them. Things will usually spread pretty fast on Social Media.
ReplyDeleteYes, with the rise of social media it is very easy to get movements started and a lot easier to access information. However, with the rise of social media, it has also led to the rise of a lot of information and stories that are blatantly false. Thats why fact checking and stuff like that is more important now than every before, in my opinion.
ReplyDeleteSocial media can allow people to remain anonymous or use a fake identity. I think this is good for the people who want to speak out about the Black Lives Matter movement without giving away their identity. Even though social media helps create group gatherings, I think more people feel more comfort with expressing themselves without having to go to these group gatherings and instead talk about the issue online.
ReplyDeleteGreat post! I agree with your post as well at the comments above. I think that Social media is the fastest way to get movements started and get opinions out there. It allows others with the same to opinion to connect and others to see different views. BUT with that said I do think that fake identity or news is something that we can not avoid. What are your thoughts on remaining anonymous?
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