Digital activism campaigns are an effective means of protest in our modern-day society. These campaigns are beneficial in rebuilding communities and providing a circle of support.
Thousands of young TikTok users and Kpop fans were given credit the small Tulsa turnout. On June 20th, 2020, Trump appeared in Tulsa to what was expected to be a crown of at least 19,000 people. On the day of the event, however, The New York Times reported that only 6,200 tickets were scanned in for the event.
This digital activism campaign gave Generation Z credit in making their voices heard outside of the polls.
Allegedly young teens, non-voters, created a protest of their own. One user saw a tweet about a free ticket to the trump rally and encouraged several other users to attend, but not show. Although Trump’s team alleges that they “weeded out the bots”, images of the event also showed a sparse audience.
Digital activism started around the 1980s with the advent of the internet. The internet provided several opportunities for an organization to get its message across on a mass scale. Leaders eventually became more strategic and used the internet to raise awareness for issues that are happening in the real world.
On social media apps such as Twitter or Facebook, there are thousands of digital activism campaigns that focus on social issues. One, in particular, is #StandwithJennifer.
I read about Jennifer’s story on social media. Jennifer McLeggan is a single black mother who lives in the state of New York. She was constantly being harassed and threatened by her neighbors. McLeggan reported her neighbors to the police multiple times but the officers did nothing to assist her. She was on her own, with her child, in a racist neighborhood — as a mother I was hurting for Jennifer. I shared her story as often as I could. Jennifer McLeggan’s story has now gained national attention. As a result received several donations of food, money, and security every evening outside of her house.
After 37 days Jennifer is now receiving coverage and possibly some form of justice for her the pain she had to endure from the minute she moved into her home.
Several young black children are kicked out of their homes or are living in insecure housing and are left with no money and nowhere to go. The digital activism campaigns assist these young adults with finding a place to sleep for the night and puts money in their pockets. Members of the LGBTQ community benefit as well. Several transitioning people are making their goals and can their lives in their rightful gender.
Digital activist campaigns alone won’t change policies or increase resources. It is important that we continue to participate in sharing, donating, and amplifying the voices of those in need and those marginalized. When we continue to uplift these voices we can force our politicians to make changes in policies so that American citizens are not left abandoned.
Queen Media Collective 