Day 22 – Q 3.What is ‘hashtag activism’? Has it been successful in bringing about positive transformation? Critically examine.

3. What is ‘hashtag activism’? Has it been successful in bringing about positive transformation? Critically examine. 

‘हैशटैग सक्रियता’ क्या है? क्या यह सकारात्मक परिवर्तन लाने में सफल रहा है? जांच करें।।

Introduction:

Hashtag activism is the act of fighting for or supporting a cause that people are advocating through social media like Facebook, instagram, Twitter, and other networking websites. This is the kind of activism that does not require any action from the person other than sharing or “liking” a post or “retweeting” tweets on Twitter.

Body

Impact of hashtag activism:

• Powerful tool: Hashtag activism can be a powerful way to control a narrative regarding a common cause that has either been neglected or misrepresented by corporate media.
• Unify people across globe: It offers the opportunity for communal participation across the globe. For instance, in the case of #BlackLivesMatter, this hashtag has become a unifying theme of multiples stories around racial injustice.
• Larger goal is emphasized: Social media has become just another tool with this larger goal for activists.
• Multiplier effect: There are roughly 2 billion people on Facebook and users spend an average of an hour a day on the site. Huge impact on society across globe.
• Monetary benefits: Can raise huge money and help the cause. Example ice bucket challenge.
• More reach to common people: Those who were more naïve about the social injustices happening were able to witness what was happening and join the conversation by simply using the hashtag.

Criticism of hashtag activism:

• More efforts to make it famous: Digital activists have to work twice as hard to ensure their movement or cause in people’s minds when it’s no longer a trending topic on Twitter.
• Big number to get attention: It is different from real live activism which is normally dependent on numbers.
• Tool for harassment:  They can create a negative impact on someone’s image or organisation, which might also demolish the purpose of which they are formed. Example me too movement
• Deviate from the cause: Most of them fail because they are controversial and have a goal to destabilise societies, rather than building them before you form a hashtag, arranging it, knowing who it is for, and the purpose you are forming it.
• Purpose is not solved: Just because a hashtag is trending doesn’t mean the issue is being dealt with. For issues such as world hunger, using #hunger isn’t going to solve anything other than raise awareness.
• Distort our realities: Filter bubbles are described as algorithms that dictate what users encounter online. Many sites offer users the opportunity to control what information others see about them and also what the users want to see themselves.

Conclusion

Hashtag activism is a great way to get involved in social justice issues, but it should not be seen as the endpoint to social activism. Ideally, for those of us seeking to change our culture for the better, this will become a first step in introducing potential activists to like-minded peers, connect and organize events, learn more about issues, and begin the often long and arduous process of social activism.