'Slacktivism', and its effect on Modern-Day Social Justice Movements

Being born into the era of internet culture is something that has had an undeniable impact on how myself and others my age have been brought up. Although we learn about the civil rights movements of the United States and South Africa in history class, our modern-day forms of protest could not be more different from what is written in these textbooks. Currently, most people participate in online activism, which is often called ‘clicktivism’, or worse ‘slacktivism’ because it is perceived as superficial or lazy. Not only has the popularization of these forms of activism has changed the way that we address social inequalities, but it also signals a drastic shift in the way that these issues will be addressed in the future.

Online activism, or as it’s commonly referred to, ‘Slacktivism’, is a form of activism that is simple enough for almost everyone with a social media profile to get involved. It allows individuals to repost, share, and discuss social injustices with the tap of a finger, which has its benefits and drawbacks. Although this has led to the widespread awareness of global issues and inequalities, many people argue that it has also caused desensitization towards these issues. For example, the first time you see someone get hate-crimed on your Instagram feed you might be outraged, it could even motivate you to take action against these crimes by taking a stand against discrimination. But when you see multiple posts like this on a daily basis, they begin to lose their importance; these crimes become reduced to just another post that you can scroll past and ignore. In other words, although slacktivism has made people more aware than ever of social injustice, it has also desensitized people towards these injustices.

Additionally, it is also important to acknowledge the fact that slacktivism lives up to its name. Although reposting aesthetic infographics can be educational, it provides little to no support to movements fighting against social inequalities. A perfect example of this is the ‘black square phenomena’ that erupted on Instagram last year, where people demonstrated their support for the BLM (Black Lives Matter) movement by posting a black square onto their Instagram feed. In my opinion, despite doing nothing to promote the BLM message, posting these squares was actually a well-intentioned way for people to show their support for the BLM movement on a small scale. Nonetheless, my issue with actions like these arises when the participants begin to feel accomplished for ‘taking a stand against oppression’. Essentially, people begin to feel rewarded for taking 2 seconds out of their day to repost an image or graphic, without having to do the difficult work of actually advocating for change. The issue is not the action of posting a black square, it is that people feel accomplished after doing so.

In all honesty, I know first-hand how hard it is to get involved in social justice movements. In fact, I was a textbook ‘Slacktivist’. My Instagram stories would always be filled with a slew of aesthetic infographics, videos, and slideshows, and I would feel genuinely accomplished after reposting them. Soon enough, I realized that it would be more effective for me to put slightly more effort into researching global issues and explaining them to others in order to raise awareness. In my opinion, taking the time to read articles about global issues and then proceeding to raise awareness is more effective than skimming an Instagram slideshow and reposting it, because it at least allows you to have an in-depth understanding of the topic: something you cannot get from Instagram posts. Additionally, providing resources to further readings/ donation links is another quick and effective way to get involved in social justice movements on a smaller scale.

Although Slacktivism has drastically changed the way that we protest, using social media and the internet as a tool to further the cause of social justice movements is integral. Rather than focusing on volume: posting a large number of meaningless posts at once; we should emphasize quality: posting a few in-depth, educational posts that direct people to useful resources and ways to get involved. Only then, can we unlock the internet’s full potential in helping us combat social injustices.