Now is the time to educate yourself
The #BlackLivesMatter movement has spread wide over all social media platforms to every post, story and share. This is a time to educate ourselves, speak up and take action via the technology we so easily have access to.
By Shannon Darby-Jones, Senior Project Manager at People for Research
“We cannot stay silent about things that actually matter” — in a recent post, Australian influencer emdavies__ spoke up to her 331k global followers about the recent tragedy of George Floyd, unjustly murdered by Minneapolis police, adding “we must use this space to educate & spread awareness right now”. Fellow users of the social giant Instagram are taking similar views with influencer Phiphibb, for example, posting “if you aren’t at all bothered by this, what’s not clicking?” and “no one wants to see your matcha latte”.
Over on IGTV, KingBach speaks of others warning him to take down his content educating his followers on police brutality or else he “might lose some brand deals”. Other comments have included:
“I’m not racist, but posting about racism would ruin my pages aesthetic.”
With all of 2020’s devastation that started with massive forest fires, evolved to a global pandemic and led to another black individual killed due to the colour of his skin, will we see influencers and brands adapt with meaningful response via their content on platforms?
Will we be more empathetic, understanding and have a purpose of change in our online presence?
The sportswear brand Nike, praised for highlighting a diverse range of all ethnicities and races in their advertisements has released a message, using their slogan in reverse ‘For once, don’t do it’. Adidas, their biggest competitor, surprisingly re-shared the content, proving that right now it’s not about sales and profit, but about all of us fighting for common goal.
Companies, influencers and users alike need to use whatever influence we hold and fuel technology to be a beacon of progress. Whether that’s a post to your Twitter followers, being anti-racist on forums or sharing an informational message on the family WhatsApp — let’s use our voice, then turn words into actions.
In the words of human rights activist Desmond Tutu: “If you are neutral in situations of injustice you have chosen the side of the oppressor.”
Here are some easy ways to support this movement with a simply click of a mouse.
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