Social Media's Effect on the Black Lives Matter Movement
BY AVA WONG '23
Introduction
The hashtag "#BlackLivesMatter" skyrocketed, appearing in just thousands of posts to 8.8 million posts in the days following George Floyd’s death on May 25, 2020. In the nationwide cry for racial equality, hashtags became a popular method of projecting information to millions of people in a single caption. Today, hashtags such as #InDefenseOfBlackLives, #DefundThePolice, and #BlackLivesMatter (#BLM) are used to popularize protests, petitions, and more.
In light of the modern, electronic age, social media provides a platform for large scale movements to take shape but also leaves them vulnerable to public disruption. Thus, with national movements such as Black Lives Matter, to what extent is social media helpful in its development?
History of #BlackLivesMatter
While #BlackLivesMatter now initiates important conversations about the systemic racism plaguing the US, it was first used to simply spread awareness about the unjust death of a Black American. In July 2013, George Zimmerman, who fatally shot Trayvon Martin while on neighborhood watch, was acquitted of all charges. The nation immediately erupted in protests and petitions calling for the justice promised to every American, and #BlackLivesMatter flooded social media. But after its initial wave, the hashtag stayed relatively dormant; the number of tagged posts remained few and stagnant until the murder of Michael Brown in 2014. According to a case study from Pew Research Center, the number of Twitter posts tagged with #BlackLivesMatter spiked dramatically with Brown’s death and the subsequent acquittal of the Ferguson Missouri police. The popularity increased by 200,000 posts and essentially stayed at that level until October 2015, when the number dropped to almost zero.
On May 25, 2020, when several police officers tragically killed George Floyd, the number of Twitter posts tagged with #BlackLivesMatter surged to nearly 3.7 million posts a day. Once again, the hashtag saw increased usage following an instance of racial injustice. Ideally, the hashtag should be used as a preventative measure to mitigate racial inequity and educate others on the systematic racism in the US. But, if that were the case, the number of posts would remain constant. The hashtag’s fluctuating popularity indicates that the Black Lives Matter movement is usually overlooked; it only comes into focus after brutal police shootings, which implies users’ underlying motives.
Productive or Performative
The increased popularity of #BlackLivesMatter makes the idea of racial equity the latest fad, rather than a means to spread awareness and seek justice. Recently, such hashtags have become a status symbol, as #blm is thrown into Instagram bios and attached to posts of interracial hand-holding that display supposed support of the movement. Last spring, an endless stream of cartoons featuring raised fists and pastel backgrounds consumed Instagram feeds. Captions including “I know I will never understand, but with you I stand” resurfaced on every other panel, resembling the chain-mail trend from elementary school: identical, empty, and driven by peer pressure. As the nationwide call for racial equality escalated, #BlackLivesMatter became a mere symbol of belonging to the popularized movement and promoted mindless contributions rather than self-education on racial issues. We degraded the movement addressing a deadly problem in our country to the newest trend.
In response to an evident increase of superficial allyism, a growing number of people expressed that true allyship does not start or end with an aesthetic Instagram story and a hashtag—it’s shown through action and intention to further the cause, not intention to fit in. Glee star Lea Michele, for example, tweeted in support of the Black Lives Matter movement using the hashtag. Responding to her tweet, one of her Black castmates spoke up about multiple racist remarks she had received from Michele. In contrast, Selena Gomez used her influence to amplify Black voices to her 179 million Instagram followers. Gomez conveyed her support by not only using her own voice, but also by magnifying those of experts and activists that have dedicated their lives to racial equality. Her choice shows the kind of thoughtful activism that furthers the cause, as opposed to Michele’s actions, which merely undermined the movement. Clearly, powerful change--whether expressed through small modifications—is made through action, so posting to appear “woke” without anti-racist purpose dilutes the efficacy of social media.
Blackout Tuesday
As the Black Lives Matter movement gained momentum, followers began organizing social media events to spread the movement’s message and encourage others to take action. However, many events, including Blackout Tuesday, became a source of misinformation and ultimately worked against the cause.
Two members of the corporate music industry, Jamila Thomas and Brianna Agyemang, started #TheShowMustBePaused. They intended to confront the music industry, which thrives off Black artists without just compensation or recognition. According to the Hot 100, Black artists produced nine out of the top ten songs for the week of October 17th. This is not an unusual event; in recent years Black artists have been the dominant contributors to the top song charts.
To stand with the movement for racial equality. Thomas and Agyemang halted all their music contributions on June 2 and encouraged others to do the same with the purpose of disrupting the industry. The idea then expanded to #BlackOutTuesday. Hundreds of thousands of people posted black screens with the intention of supporting the movement. Unfortunately, many of these posts were also tagged #BlackLivesMatter, which flooded useless information into the #BlackLivesMatter stream, drowning out official and informative posts.
However, the #TheShowMustBePaused event was not entirely fruitless. Columbia Records gave their employees the day to “reflect and figure out ways to move forward in solidarity.” Def Jam Records employees donated their daily salary to the Black Lives Matter movement that day. Republic Records suspended the release of all albums for the week.
Arguably, the most impactful aspect of Blackout Tuesday was that record companies began showing more support for the Black artists that allowed them to flourish. Overall, while Blackout Tuesday showcased social media’s strength and momentum in forwarding racial equality, it also exposed how susceptible it is to misuse.
Conclusion
As a community at Acton-Boxborough, we are in the midst of change reflected in both the removal of our mascot and the massive, nationwide protests. As social media becomes an increasingly prevalent tool in social and progressive movements, it is vital to educate ourselves and act responsibly. We need to recognize that what we publicize matters—even one post can reach hundreds of thousands. In fact, sometimes the best way to use our social media presence may not be posting our own opinions, but rather magnifying voices of color to enlighten our communities.
It is crucial that we all listen, learn, and think before we post.
The hashtag "#BlackLivesMatter" skyrocketed, appearing in just thousands of posts to 8.8 million posts in the days following George Floyd’s death on May 25, 2020. In the nationwide cry for racial equality, hashtags became a popular method of projecting information to millions of people in a single caption. Today, hashtags such as #InDefenseOfBlackLives, #DefundThePolice, and #BlackLivesMatter (#BLM) are used to popularize protests, petitions, and more.
In light of the modern, electronic age, social media provides a platform for large scale movements to take shape but also leaves them vulnerable to public disruption. Thus, with national movements such as Black Lives Matter, to what extent is social media helpful in its development?
History of #BlackLivesMatter
While #BlackLivesMatter now initiates important conversations about the systemic racism plaguing the US, it was first used to simply spread awareness about the unjust death of a Black American. In July 2013, George Zimmerman, who fatally shot Trayvon Martin while on neighborhood watch, was acquitted of all charges. The nation immediately erupted in protests and petitions calling for the justice promised to every American, and #BlackLivesMatter flooded social media. But after its initial wave, the hashtag stayed relatively dormant; the number of tagged posts remained few and stagnant until the murder of Michael Brown in 2014. According to a case study from Pew Research Center, the number of Twitter posts tagged with #BlackLivesMatter spiked dramatically with Brown’s death and the subsequent acquittal of the Ferguson Missouri police. The popularity increased by 200,000 posts and essentially stayed at that level until October 2015, when the number dropped to almost zero.
On May 25, 2020, when several police officers tragically killed George Floyd, the number of Twitter posts tagged with #BlackLivesMatter surged to nearly 3.7 million posts a day. Once again, the hashtag saw increased usage following an instance of racial injustice. Ideally, the hashtag should be used as a preventative measure to mitigate racial inequity and educate others on the systematic racism in the US. But, if that were the case, the number of posts would remain constant. The hashtag’s fluctuating popularity indicates that the Black Lives Matter movement is usually overlooked; it only comes into focus after brutal police shootings, which implies users’ underlying motives.
Productive or Performative
The increased popularity of #BlackLivesMatter makes the idea of racial equity the latest fad, rather than a means to spread awareness and seek justice. Recently, such hashtags have become a status symbol, as #blm is thrown into Instagram bios and attached to posts of interracial hand-holding that display supposed support of the movement. Last spring, an endless stream of cartoons featuring raised fists and pastel backgrounds consumed Instagram feeds. Captions including “I know I will never understand, but with you I stand” resurfaced on every other panel, resembling the chain-mail trend from elementary school: identical, empty, and driven by peer pressure. As the nationwide call for racial equality escalated, #BlackLivesMatter became a mere symbol of belonging to the popularized movement and promoted mindless contributions rather than self-education on racial issues. We degraded the movement addressing a deadly problem in our country to the newest trend.
In response to an evident increase of superficial allyism, a growing number of people expressed that true allyship does not start or end with an aesthetic Instagram story and a hashtag—it’s shown through action and intention to further the cause, not intention to fit in. Glee star Lea Michele, for example, tweeted in support of the Black Lives Matter movement using the hashtag. Responding to her tweet, one of her Black castmates spoke up about multiple racist remarks she had received from Michele. In contrast, Selena Gomez used her influence to amplify Black voices to her 179 million Instagram followers. Gomez conveyed her support by not only using her own voice, but also by magnifying those of experts and activists that have dedicated their lives to racial equality. Her choice shows the kind of thoughtful activism that furthers the cause, as opposed to Michele’s actions, which merely undermined the movement. Clearly, powerful change--whether expressed through small modifications—is made through action, so posting to appear “woke” without anti-racist purpose dilutes the efficacy of social media.
Blackout Tuesday
As the Black Lives Matter movement gained momentum, followers began organizing social media events to spread the movement’s message and encourage others to take action. However, many events, including Blackout Tuesday, became a source of misinformation and ultimately worked against the cause.
Two members of the corporate music industry, Jamila Thomas and Brianna Agyemang, started #TheShowMustBePaused. They intended to confront the music industry, which thrives off Black artists without just compensation or recognition. According to the Hot 100, Black artists produced nine out of the top ten songs for the week of October 17th. This is not an unusual event; in recent years Black artists have been the dominant contributors to the top song charts.
To stand with the movement for racial equality. Thomas and Agyemang halted all their music contributions on June 2 and encouraged others to do the same with the purpose of disrupting the industry. The idea then expanded to #BlackOutTuesday. Hundreds of thousands of people posted black screens with the intention of supporting the movement. Unfortunately, many of these posts were also tagged #BlackLivesMatter, which flooded useless information into the #BlackLivesMatter stream, drowning out official and informative posts.
However, the #TheShowMustBePaused event was not entirely fruitless. Columbia Records gave their employees the day to “reflect and figure out ways to move forward in solidarity.” Def Jam Records employees donated their daily salary to the Black Lives Matter movement that day. Republic Records suspended the release of all albums for the week.
Arguably, the most impactful aspect of Blackout Tuesday was that record companies began showing more support for the Black artists that allowed them to flourish. Overall, while Blackout Tuesday showcased social media’s strength and momentum in forwarding racial equality, it also exposed how susceptible it is to misuse.
Conclusion
As a community at Acton-Boxborough, we are in the midst of change reflected in both the removal of our mascot and the massive, nationwide protests. As social media becomes an increasingly prevalent tool in social and progressive movements, it is vital to educate ourselves and act responsibly. We need to recognize that what we publicize matters—even one post can reach hundreds of thousands. In fact, sometimes the best way to use our social media presence may not be posting our own opinions, but rather magnifying voices of color to enlighten our communities.
It is crucial that we all listen, learn, and think before we post.