ILLUSTRATION BY MYTAM LE

Performative activism is pointless

1 1
Read Time2 Minute, 37 Second

As awareness of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement increases, people have been using their social media platforms to show their support. This has allowed people to “raise awareness” for the shallow purpose of benefiting their own reputation and avoiding being labeled as “a bad person.” Performative activism is not only selfish, but illogical and bigoted because it blocks out true activism and ignores the fact that people are going through adversity.  

The main goal of activism is to raise awareness on social issues. In early June, music executives Brianna Agyemang and Jamila Thomas wanted to “pause the show in the music industry” to help raise awareness on police brutality against the Black community. This soon led to “#blackouttuesday” on Instagram. Many began to post a black square onto their feed to show their solidarity with the BLM movement.  At the end of the day, more people were arguing whether or not the square should be posted with  “#blacklivesmatter” or “#blackout tuesday”, preventing the uncomfortable conversations about race and failing to “pause the show,” like the creators wanted. In addition, the photo itself did not benefit anyone as it provided no information on how to support the Black community. All it did was give “you’re not anti-black” card, which is an inconsiderate reaction to an innocent man losing his life.  

Performative activism romanticizes the fact that people are suffering due to systemic hate: the repeated practices in a society that benefits the majority while harming the minority. Recently, a couple, Paul Chelmis and Jing Wen, began a jewelry line called “Wear their names,” where they created jewelry inspired by the deaths of victims of systemic racism in hopes of finding beauty in the violent protests. Although they claimed that they would donate profits to charity, they marketed the deaths of innocent Black people and made it into an aesthetic. The goal of getting justice for the wrongful deaths was not the goal anymore. The goal now is making the murders into a cute Instagramable necklace. This is not only heartless by possibly being a publicity stunt, but disrespectful for theBlack community overall.  

Although critics say that posting on social media is true activism since some are unable to attend protests, there are other ways to be supportive which would have a greater impact than a social media post. Signing petitions or donating money towards organizations striving for social justice is a thoughtful start, but re-educating oneself and forgetting the hatred that has been learned is also productive. There is no guideline on how to be an activist, but the biggest way anyone can help is through reviewing their own ideologies and internalized hatred.  

Performative activism can only last for so long, and when it ends, true activism will be ignored, which results in people disregarding what they were fighting for. If posting a picture can solve social issues, there would be no need for activism. The best way to be an activist is to educate yourself and others, to have those uncomfortable conversations, and to realize your own privilege. 

Average Rating

5 Star
0%
4 Star
0%
3 Star
0%
2 Star
0%
1 Star
0%

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *