#blacklivesmatter. #lgbtqia+. #womensrights. #activism. It seems as though teens everywhere
believe and promote this ideology of activism, whether over social media, through heightened
conversations with friends, or in the form of protests. What sparked it? What created this
generation of accepting, bold, and outspoken individuals who will do anything to reach equality for all? There are many factors, and we’ll take a look at a few today.
One reason may be due to the increasing racial and ethnic diversity in Generation Z. According to the Pew Research Center, “A bare majority [of Gen Z] (52%) are non-Hispanic white ... One-in-four Gen Zers are Hispanic, 14% are black, 6% are Asian and 5% are some other race or two or more races.” The increase of racial diversity allows for a greater variety of voices and opinions that may lead to more progressive mindsets when it comes to issues such as lgbtqia+ rights or pro-choice vs pro-life.
Now this coupled with increased college education for both gen zers and their parents (Pew
Research Center), i mean why wouldn’t they think more progressively?
But it’s not like gen z is the only activist generation. In fact, baby boomers, during their peak,
fought for social change and personal freedom and even fought during the Civil Rights
Movement. This previous generations’ activism paved the way for many marginalized groups
today. The Hippie Movement, another activist group in the 60s, was centered around rejecting the mores of mainstream American life, and they frequently participated in peaceful protests against gun violence and war.
So it seems like activism is some new big thing gen zers created, when in actuality, it has been around for centuries, even further back than Baby Boomers. And honestly, social media has played a huge part in bringing Generation Z’s activism to the forefront, amplifying voices from all across the world. With tools like Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok, nearly anyone can make an Insta story about black lives matter, create a 15 second TikTok video about pride month, and retweet a tweet about an MLK quote.
But while social media has been able to promote activism and bring it to the forefront of many
discussions, it has also created a greater population of passive activists. And they have especially grown in number during this pandemic, as social media is really all we have to communicate and share ideas. Examples of this “passive activism” include posting a black square on Instagram (during the #blackouttuesday event on Instagram), or making a 15 second video on TikTok making the iconic “racism is bad” speech, but then going to back to whatever it is this person was doing prior to trying to fit in. These passive activists are activists not because they actually desire change, but because they don’t want to be “cancelled” on social media. And surprisingly enough, this group of people makes up a lot of the activist gen zers.
So maybe it’s not that gen z is more activist, but rather that gen z simply knows how to use
social media to manipulate a narrative. While most gen zers want change, the rest of them just
want to enjoy their unproblematic lives with the convenience of posting something on social
media.
But at what cost?
Article by Ibilola Esho (@ibilolaesho)
Photo by @bubblegumhope
コメント