Activism

Activism and Social Media

Struggles between race has been a problem since human beings have been on this earth. News of these struggles have been hard to obtain until social media became popular. 

In 2014, a change in topics within the media has come up. Social media has been the go to device for people to be educated on problems or controversies around the world. We get our trending news on Facebook and a shared story on twitter. But, in 2014 the subject to many of these videos are involving white police officers and black male citizens. 

The access to see these videos has brought attention to many Americans to the topic of racism. This controversy has even shut down Baltimore. It all started with the death of Freddie Grey. On the day of his funeral, riots broke out in protest for everyone to notice and understand the struggle between the stereotypes of black males and harassment from white police officers.


I haven't done much activism myself, but this is my take on the "Black lives Matter" movement:

To the parties involved:

Whoever is behind the camera: I understand you want to get the word out about these problems, but if someone's life is in danger, then you intervene. They have the right to live similar to everyone. Simply taking a video will not change the problem, but it may help save a life.

To the police officers: Don't assume; Don't stereotype; Don't harass. Be the enforcer of the law and protect those who need protecting.

To the black community: Please don't assume that all white cops are racist. Don't kill them because of other cop's mistakes. 

The problem here isn't racism. We don't see a cop arresting Jay-Z while he walks through his streets of Brooklyn. We don't see a cop pointing his gun and shooting at the black CEO. The problem here is the butting heads of culture.

Races have different views in life. One may want to go to college out of high school, or the military. One may want to start a family. One may have grown up in a neglecting environment that creates a drug consuming moocher. 

The cop may have grown up differently than the black male. Thus, their heads butt when conflict arises. 

What we can do:

Try to see past races. Try to understand other's cultures. And above all treat everyone with respect and dignity.



Is it summer yet?

Mikayla