Activism in the digital age
In 2021, we are well and truly living in the as digital citizens in the age of the internet, with more and more people using online technologies as a platform to communicate and engage with society, world events and politics, digital citizenship has given people a voice and forged the way for globalised connectivity.
One aspect of globalised connectivity and digital citizenship is the rise of online activism and protest. Over the last decade we have seen digital communities form and engage in critical discussions, organise protests, digital campaigns, live streamed events and media releases. Digital activism has linked people all around the world in their commonalities and passions to see a change.
So why does activism and protesting work?
It works because it sends signals to major corporations, governments and the media that there needs to be change. Protest can be both peaceful and disruptive and dangerous, over the years we have seen the extremities of protest both online and offline.
Online activism can be characterised by an individual’s beliefs and desires to make change, the organisation of activism and protest, sharing commonalities and experiences with the broader internet community, all can work harmoniously or individually.
There are many aspects of Digital Activism on social media platforms, some you might be familiar with are:
1. Clicktivism: Clicktivism by definition is a form of online activism through clicking or reposting a link to a campaign, petition, often with minimal effort required. Clicktivism is heavily criticised for the little effect it has on making change however clicktivism can also be considered political participation and helpful for the future of online activism and gaining numbers and traction behind causes such as petitions.
2. Slacktivism: Slacktivism is the process of supporting a cause through small measures, this can include aspects of clicktivism such as liking a Facebook page or sharing a post. Slacktivism is closely linked to clicktivism in the way it oversimplifies global problems (Lodewijckx 2020) and doesn’t really have results for change.
3. Digilantism & Digital Vigilantism: “Digital Vigilantism is a process where citizens are collectively offended by other citizen activity, and respond through coordinated retaliation on digital media, including mobile devices and social media platforms”. (Trottier 2017) Digilantism is conceptualised by the process of social transgression and activism to raise awareness in a public sphere to an issue normalised in society such as misogyny, this can be reflected in feminist digilantism and the #Metoo movement which approaches naming and shaming tactics in order to gain awareness. Through the thousands of shared realities and experiences the #metoo movement created, digilantism created a worldwide digital community and space for activism to be nurtured and suported. Digitlism can be considered as a ‘violent action’ or a more aggressive approach to online activism and is sometimes illegal or negative repercussions and ramifications.
On the more complex level online protest and activism can be used to connect and organise events globally. Extinction rebellion are globalised community of activists fighting against the effects of climate change. Extinction rebellion have formed their community through online platforms to engage in discussion and plan protest.
Extinction Rebellion Protest 2019- Photography by Isabella St John
In 2019 I landed a job on a media team documenting one of the more radical extinction rebellion protests in Brisbane city to raise awareness of the effects of climate change and The Australian bushfires. Their mission was to shut down one major bridge in Brisbane city for one hour to show how by one hour of stopped traffic we can contribute to saving our environment from the effects of climate change and to inspire people to think about how we all contribute to the climate. Our mission as a media team was to see how they operated as activists, from online to offline.
Extinction Rebellion Protest 2019- Photography by Isabella St John
This protest would have not existed if it wasn’t for the internet providing the platform for these activists to communicate, plan and strategize. As a media team we did not know the location of the protest until it was posted on the internet one hour before the event. There was a lot of running that day!
A major aspect of this particular protest was most of the activists were live streaming from their phones to social media platforms explaining the situation to their online audience or digital community. This to me was a reflection of how integrated activism and protest is online and offline in the modern age.
Extinction Rebellion Protest 2019- Photography by Isabella St John
Online activism will continue to grow and evolve, while it has a long way to go, it is essential to raise awareness and keep connected to a cause.
References|
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Halupka, M., 2016. OII | Don’t knock clickivism: it represents the political participation aspirations of the modern citizen. [online] Oii.ox.ac.uk. Available at: <https://www.oii.ox.ac.uk/blog/dont-knock-clickivism-it-represents-the-political-participation-aspirations-of-the-modern-citizen/> [Accessed 16 August 2021].
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Sepúlveda, A., n.d. The relevance of digital activism in expanding the climate justice movement and civic engagement: A case study on Extinction Rebellion. [online] Iras.uj.edu.pl. Available at: <http://www.iras.uj.edu.pl/documents/34382949/144149306/IAPSS_Ariel+Sepulveda+%283%29.pdf/9b26bd64-c04b-49b4-8caf-68c32fedf57f> [Accessed 16 August 2021].