In his book The World is Flat, Thomas Friedman briskly mentions and then overlooks the idea of social activism in terms of a way to go about "maximizing the benefits and opportunities of the flat world" (p. 378). It is likely that his understanding of such a topic was minimal and he threw it into the book in passing as a way of making himself look well-versed. Yet Friedman then created an award that is recognized nationally for social activism--one of the largest awards for social activism known to date. How does this make sense?
That's because the Friedman that created this award was not Thomas Friedman, but rather Stephen Friedman, the President of MTV. The 2011 Video Music Awards included this category-- "Best Video with a Message". It seems logical that in 2011 such thing would occur, as social activism is a much more talked about subject than it was when Thomas Friedman published his book. It seems as if his inclusion of that topic was a little ahead of the curve. Today, social activism can be seen everywhere. To Write Love On Her Arms, an almost purely technology-based non-profit that works to reduce suicide and depression has over a million supporters on Facebook.
Each year the organization picks one day and promotes it like crazy on all the social media websites. Millions of people around the world write the word "love" on their arm on that day in support of their cause.
Personally, I am a huge supporter of social activism. The ability to reach out to large groups of people is key in getting support for movements to promote change. This year, Penn State's FreshSTART Day of Service had over 900 volunteers, all of which signed up online. The possibilities for service and for bettering the world, to me, are endless with the use of social activism. Whether it is a small group of university students, a non-profit organization, or a celebrity, social activism is truly bettering the world.If we jump back to the first example with the Social Activism Award at the VMAs, we can see how social activism is being noticed throughout the world. This article by the Huffington Post lists the nominees for this award:
Pink - “F-ing Perfect”
Katy Perry - “Firework”
Eminem featuring Rihanna - “Love the Way You Lie”
Rise Against - “Make It Stop (September’s Children)”
Taylor Swift - “Mean”
While I wouldn't say these are the best songs of all time, if you check out the lyrics, they do all send positive messages. The winner of the first annual Social Activism Award was Mean by Taylor Swift.
The song's lyrics include phrases such as this one:
Taylor Swift inspires youth by saying that one day they will grow up to be bigger and better people, but the bullies are simply always going to be mean.We have seen bullying, and cyber-bullying in particular, in the news quite frequently, as kids are feeling more comfortable bullying behind the protection of a computer screen. Songs like this, and many other videos that have been created recently, work to combat cyber-bullying.
So what do you think? Are you as supportive of social activism as I am? Do you feel that the use of social media has caused too many service-related causes to gain importance that you almost don't know which one to support? I am looking forward to your responses!
Dani
Dani, I also agree that social activism plays a large role in the flat world that we live in, a role larger than Friedman anticipated when he wrote this book. He didn't have much to say about this topic when it was published. I think this was because he wasn't really sure how it would come to be a factor...only time would tell. As social networking sites and other forms of mass communication came to play a large role in our lives, so did social activism. These sites served as a platform to get a massive amount of people organized for a common cause. You say that "social activism is truly bettering the world." I agree with this statement but I'd like to present a twist on it. I think that social activism is bettering people, which in effect is bettering the world. Social activism (through the use of mass media outlets to get people's attention about all of the various opportunities available to act) allows everyone to find something that they are passionate about. Friedman discusses the importance of passion and creativity in this section of book and I think that social activism ties into this. Because people are discovering what they are passionate in through the use of social activism, people are bettering the world. This is a primary example of how social networking can have a large impact on the world. There can never be too many service-related causes in this world because everyone has different passions and interests. The more chances for people to better themselves through discovering their passion, the better off we'll be in the new flat world.
ReplyDeleteHey Dani, This is a really cool and interesting post that I’m glad I didn’t past by. First and foremost I want to say thank you for being a part of such a positive group of people, bringing change to the world. I totally understand what you are saying about positive messages in music. Today in society there are barely any uplifting songs with messages. I personally make music myself so I listen to everybody. Most of the music that I listen today is artists not known right now, and old school artist like Tupac Shakur. This is the music that I can find positive messages in whenever I’m feeling down or just want to simply enjoy. Tupac Shakur came from a rough lifestyle and expresses it in his music and that why millions of people around the world can relate to him, and still listen to him years after his death. Most music today is about partying and lavish lifestyles that most of us aren’t living. Record Companies sign people that are going to sell records, but our society is so corrupted by the corrupt media they will buy garbage with no meaning. Social Activism is something that anyone with a heart would participate in everyday in some form. I never heard about “To Write Love On Her Arms” until I read your post, and now just “Liked” it on my Facebook to stay updated. I’m glad they made a group like this to reduce suicide and depression and everyone can help each other out. Also speaking of suicide the rates they have been increasing these past years, especially with coming home army troops. I never been in the army but I know it can change a person mentally with all the killing and no justice in the end.
ReplyDeleteI thought this was a very interesting topic to bring up. I found the social activism part of these chapters to be the most relevant to our current generation and the lives we live. I find myself being bombarded, on a day to day basis, by invites to help support causes. It has gotten to the point that I no longer read what they are about and hit ignore. It is incredible to see what social media has done to spread support for causes (such as the causes application on facebook), but when is enough, enough? I think social activism has existed forever, it's just that prevalence of social media has put it more in the spotlight. We can look back at the 60's, 70's, 80's, 90's, and see all kinds of social activism movements. These could include the "hippie" culture, civil rights, women's rights, and so much more.I am a strong supporter of social movements, especially ones that are relevant to me, but I also think social media is hurting them at the same time. I am confused why Friedman didn't touch on social activism more because even though there wasn't tons of social media around when he wrote his book, there were still numerous social movements still going on. A good example he could have looked at was in 2003 when people gathered in cities worldwide to protest the invasion of Iraq. I just felt he had plenty of material that he could have used in his book. Moving on, I enjoyed reading about your post about the music. Being a huge music fan, I think music is a great way for people to express themselves and share their opinions. As Andrew said, I never knew about "to Write Love on Her Arms" before you posted. I look forward to reading more about this. I also never knew about this new award that MTV created. Although this is a nice award to win, I don't think they should limit it to just one person being able to win it. I think if all these songs were up for nomination, they should have all been rewarded. They all had their message in them and one shouldn't take precedence over another. All in all, social activism is very important, but it is important that every issue continues to have support from people and not have social media make them irrelevant.
ReplyDeleteDani, thanks for illustrating how technology is facilitating the dissemination of information on causes, and therefore, mobilizing people behind these causes, as demonstrated by the non-profit To Write Love on Her Arms. While I agree that the internet serves as an efficient platform for communicating ideas and organizing events to promote social goals, I think our class discussion on Tuesday about our generation and high-risk versus low-risk activism brought up an interesting point about how social activism is perceived and acted upon by our generation.
ReplyDeleteOur parents or grandparents descended on county courthouses and staged sit-ins to promote the civil rights agenda while we ease into our plush desk chairs in the comfort of our homes to blog about the injustices of our day. Does this make us lazier activists? (Pardon the oxymoron.)
I agree with Chris that the increase in access to information that our generation has experienced means that we are better able to acquire information on many different causes, allowing us to develop a deep understanding and passion towards all of them. However, with this increase in knowledge comes a slight desensitization to issues as Pat touched on—after the fourth Facebook invitation requesting that we wear a certain color on a specific date in support of a cause, we become less inclined to participate, because, let’s face it: did bullying end because you wore red in support of it’s victims? Is hunger a thing of the past because you wore green last Thursday? While the internet has been conducive to raising awareness and garnering support, it is the next crucial step—what to do with this newfound activism and support—that is oftentimes missing from web-based social activism.
And yet, I can’t be completely skeptical of the way in which the technologically-driven activism of our generation produces change. For instance in 2005, a woman named Cindy Sheehan began a one woman crusade to end the war in Iraq following the death of her son who was a soldier stationed in Iraq. She parked a lawn chair out front of President George W. Bush’s ranch in Texas and refused to leave until the war was over. A few weeks later, candlelight vigils were organized in hundreds of cities around the country by Democratic action committee Move On through their website Moveon.org to support Sheehan’s mission. While these events alone did not end our wars abroad, they certainly opened the eyes of many Americans to the realities of war which led to increasing dissatisfaction with our presence in Iraq. Subsequently, our government committed to pulling out of Iraq although the expediency and extent to which this has occurred is still questionable.
I am an advocate of social activism and believe that today it is easier than ever to get involved both locally and internationally. It’s so easy that the number of social campaigns has skyrocketed. They seem to have to market themselves and must compete with each other to be effective. Like any other product, clever campaigning and sexy advertisements bring in the most money. I do not know whether this trend is right. It has attracted the attention of the wealthiest people, who like the spotlight and use social programs to attract the media. It has created a frenzy, where red carpet events costing hundreds of thousands of dollars are thrown around to bring in millions. In some situations, corruption has followed this money. However, even if the end result is a greater general awareness of the darkness in the world, these programs have done their part.
ReplyDeleteI try not to be cynical when I see the social campaigns done by celebrities. I believe that today’s songs that sing about change mostly fall on deaf ears. I think of Rage Against the Machine, Bob Dylan and The Clash more than Taylor Swift when discussing activism in music. However, those could be argued were a reflection of the times, rather than a bringer of them. I don’t know if MTV’s award has any tangible effect on social problems, but it’s hard to argue its existence brings harm. Perhaps there are a few that listen and are inspired by Taylor Swift and Lady Gaga and that is good enough for me. While, I may have trouble listening to a teenager’s thoughts on the world’s problems, it shows a trend of accountability and responsibility. I do remember hearing about Justin Beaver bringing some kid that fought against bullying up on stage, praising his bravery. At least these awards bring celebrities to be good role models.