UNC students discuss advantages, challenges of social media activism

If you’re active on Twitter or Instagram, chances are you’ve witnessed the surge in activism surrounding Black Lives Matter on these platforms throughout the summer.  

Because COVID-19 has made physical proximity nearly impossible, activists have relied heavily upon digital platforms to educate and organize. 

But many agree that virtual advocacy comes with challenges, like when people post online without taking further action, the misconstruction of information and a potential lack of empathy and understanding among users. 

Veda Patil, co-president of the UNC Campus Y, said she thinks a major shift toward online activism took place in March when students left campus. 

“I think that’s when the transition started, where we started thinking about ways we could use social media and the internet in place of in-person meeting,” Patil said. “I think there’s also been an increase in participation, and that’s been since the death of George Floyd.” 

Thilini Weerakkody, the other co-president of the Campus Y, said one of the biggest advantages of online activism is that it creates a wealth of easily accessible information. She said the surplus of educational tools circulating social media has created opportunities to attend webinars and workshops she wouldn’t have had access to if there hadn’t been such a shift to the internet. 

“One of my favorite quotes is that in the age of information, ignorance is a choice,” Weerakkody said. “I think that being on the internet really ensures that people have access to information, and they can make informed decisions, which is so important.” 

Ampson Hagan, an anthropology graduate student and member of the UNC Anti-Racist Grad Worker Collective, said social media plays a big part in disseminating information and mobilizing people. 

“Social media’s platform allows for really quick, really rapid scaling up of efforts and demands and actions,” Hagan said. 

Greear Webb, a sophomore and the youngest member of the Raleigh Police Advisory Board, said digital platforms have made it possible for him to continue collaborating with others during the time of COVID-19. 

“A lot of the things I am doing now is virtual advocacy, and engaging with other leaders across the state and talking with them about how they are working to elevate the voices and lives of Black people in their communities and working with people that are focused on defunding the police and refunding our community here in Raleigh. And that’s taken place over multiple online meetings,” Webb said. 

Webb said that even though it can be difficult to achieve the same energy of an in-person meeting, meeting online is a viable alternative. 

“So we do know that there is a lot of power in physical raising up and using our voices, but in the age of coronavirus and school reopening and the risks that are associated with all of that, we found that virtual advocacy can almost be as effective, and safer," Webb said.  

However, some activists do have concerns about this shift. Patil said one danger of social media is that people could post as a performative gesture — to demonstrate their support for a given cause without taking further action offline. She said expressing support for Black Lives Matter became the norm this summer, and people saw it simply as a box to check off so they wouldn’t face criticism. 

“Even corporations were saying Black Lives Matter, and they were painting Black Lives Matter on the streets,” Patil said. “But have we seen any arrests of cops? Have we seen any substantial policy chance? We haven’t. So those are all, in my opinion, performative gestures.” 

Patil said in her experience, the people who show up in person and make efforts to educate themselves are not the ones who are only posting on their Instagram stories. 

“They don’t feel like they have anything to prove to anyone, because they are actually showing up and doing the work,” she said. “And when it becomes more about the image you project and less about actually taking steps to learn and participate, that’s when I think that social media activism can veer into something more harmful.” 

Vibhuti Sehgal, co-director of communication for the Campus Y, said another challenge of online activism is that social media tends to dehumanize individuals. She said people often just see words and images on a screen instead of a real human being worthy of compassion and respect. 

“I think it makes it really difficult to have conversations, because you’re only seeing one side of a story. But on the flip side of that, a lot of people may feel more comfortable sharing certain information because it is so depersonalized and they don’t have to personalize their experience to themselves,” she said. “And it’s a little bit more anonymous than sharing in person.” 

Ellison Commodore, co-director of communication for the Campus Y, said it’s important to be mindful of other people’s identities and experiences. He said when seeking more information, it’s important not to rely on the people who are affected systemically by oppression to do all the work in educating. 

“This is more broadly, but with anything, if somebody is talking about their experience based on their identity, especially if you don’t identify with that identity, really listen to what they’re saying," Commodore said, "because more times than not, their experience is due to something that you may never experience."

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