#BlackLivesMatter: The Technological Bullet that Triggered the Global “Anti-Racialist Journey”

 On December 1, 1995, Rosa Parks walked into a Montgomery Bus and chose a seat reserved for "whites only." Rosa's courageous choice became the first social justice act for a modification in all citizens' treatment. Activists created artistic posters, and onlookers veered from their windows, them yelling on their megaphones, "Power, Power, Power to the people! Power, Power, Power to the children!" The faction used their loud voices at protests or rallies with an appeal to pathos, such as addressing the audience as "we," "hate will not win," and "revolution." These acts are now easily viewed from our bed's comfort in the 21st century, where global audiences can see these events using the exhibition: social media. Platforms such as Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, etc., have developed more ways of promoting messages in the 1960s, such as LGBT equality, Women's Rights, Teacher Strikes, and Black Lives Matter. The digital algorithm set by all social media users transformed from only posting one awareness of the movement changed into billions of posts of quotes surrounding modern racism, police brutality events, and charities funded towards BLM organizations. This transformation is significant in a recording from Pew Research where a rough "quarter (23%) of adult social media users in the United States – and 17% of adults overall" saying they have changed their views about BLM, police brutality, and political parties" (Pew Research).  The reasoning behind why users use the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter is now not needed since racism still exists. The pandemic has led others to profoundly evaluate the issue and promoted BLM to become the trending topic within all digital communities. Users can voice a particular opinion of praise for the campaign inside and outside of media platforms. 

In a research venture where authors evaluated the database of accounts that encouraged the BLM group, the results evaluated that "out of 161 social media accounts, 42 (26%) self-identified as linked to the national BLM movement, while another 49 (30%) identified in ways that suggested some affiliation but in ways that were unclear. The remaining 70 accounts (44%) used the BLM name or hashtag but claimed no explicit link to the national network or the Movement for Black Lives" (Sage Journals). No matter what views people have towards political or social issues, BLM succeeded in attracting a broad audience, from uploading a police brutality video to creating charities and releasing BLM stories for others to repost. The recordings summarize that a user who has any form of access to social media can learn more about their actions and meaning by even physically showing up to people's doors or protesting on the streets. Citizens worldwide can voice their opinions of the movement from their perspective and find ways to become online communities. Overall, no matter whether the user's view of BLM is genuine or jumping on the bandwagon for more followers, BLM did its job creating a high-profile platform.  Amateur users, influencers, celebrities, and political leaders can finally recognize the injustice that is still set today from a video where a police officer mistreats and abuses an everyday black citizen.  

           Digital platforms were set up by online developers for everyday citizens to connect through photos and messaging around the world. This innovation created not only global friendships but also businesses with greater accessibility than with an office. This online establishment guided companies and employees to profit from their exhibitions of jobs created, evolving changes in today's politics, movies in production, and the project's cast. On June 2, Blackout Tuesday became a trending hashtag where users posted a black canvas onto their page. It served as a benefit to commemorate the lives lost from police brutality. This shift thus created an impact on actress Emma Watson's Instagram page. Before the tragedy, her Instagram posts consisted of personal and business events, where she succeeded. On June 2, she replaced her profile picture with a black screen in the Memoriam of Blackout Tuesday and changed her feed style. In the post below, Emma showed a photo with a pounded fist appearing out of a posh British teacup with a caption expressing how the UK school system relies on the "American experience" of historical events on racial oppression than educate on the "racial violence that scars British history" (Emma Watson). The clashing of hypocrisy tones from the 1960s Brown fist and the English teacup's artistry create an antithesis between appearance and reality. The two differing themes clash as the teacup is decorated with elegant flowers and has an obscure artistic design of soft and fancy curves. The Brown fist goes straight to the sky like an emerging firework display and creates a shocking value since it appears larger than the cup. The English teacup hides the liquid and uses its elegant design to clarify whoever uses it is from a higher class, and the fist signifies the pure truth of what lies inside the cup. In reality, England is not acknowledging the lack of education regarding their history of racial inequality. The fist lifts through protests and online posts to fight against England, avoiding the major racial issue today. The semiotic figure emphasizes the need for global education on racial oppression so that the issue of racism is acknowledged and learned when students prepare for the world. The transformation between a standard Instagram portrait to one with an appreciation of black culture presents how society has transformed to create education implements within the classroom. There are outlets from which we can honor the struggle for racial justice in the US, whether in donations or watching documentaries or films that accurately describe it. These actions by everyday users promote BLM to continue to go forward with the algorithm that dictates all cultures' appreciation and supports peace and kindness within each other.  

        Publications that high-profile personalities make are not only behind the screen but in front of a camera. In Stephen Colbert's talk show, Late Night with Stephen Colbert, actor Will Smith engaged in an interview on political topics, marriage counseling, and his recent discussion with President Obama about playing him in an upcoming movie. The conversation went on when Colbert asked Smith his opinion on race relations not evolving and staying the same as it did in the previous years of the unjust slavery in the 1860s and revolutions in the 1960s. Will believes that instead of becoming worse, "we are talking about race in the country more clearly and openly than we have almost ever in the history of this country. Racism is not getting worse; it is being filmed" (The Hollywood Report). Smith's words of wisdom capture the power of social media and its guidance in allowing the publication of black citizens to share their raw experiences of the police's treatment towards them using force and even murder. These posts display the essentiality of the technological, social media stage where activists can use these tragic stories to narrate their logic and reasoning behind forming the BLM community.  In the 1960s, The Black Liberation Movement promoted itself with marches and protests. It has now evolved digitally into the Black Lives Matter movement that we know of today. There are now countless posts of recognition for black victims victimized by police brutality. The amount of focus placed on publicizing the fluctuating number of unjust black murders is now the essential part of BLM's virtual march the minute George Floyd's video went viral and hit the news.   

       The phrase "Black Lives Matter" has created a historical narrative from which the current generation views raw footage of unjust police brutality on people of color. I never researched the topic but recognized its significance in my Social Activism class. My professor Dr. Monzó gave me an assignment asking what we learned from the BLM media platforms. I focused on the riots and violence depicted by Instagram and news platforms in my answer and addressed the details rather than the big picture. She responded, "I feel that we have to perceive that 500 years of mistreatment and killings of Black individuals as to why people protest. As a general public, we acknowledge the police's savagery and different foundations against shading networks, yet they are the miscreants when they respond. Isn't this dishonest?" This thought that Dr. Monzó raised concerning this perspective on Black Lives Matter is something that I never considered. When exploring the BLM digital community within Facebook groups and Instagram, I could not get her view out of my mind. Thus, I made a Zoom call with her and conversed about my confusing yet alluring paradigm shift. During my family dinners, conversations influenced my opinions, and I chose to default on my parents' teachings than explore them for myself. She revealed that even though she doesn't excuse the viciousness depicted in the media by activists, we should keep an open mind about the victims and their families dealing with the anger phase of their grieving process. Journalists and social media users strive to present their current ideas onto their platforms and persuade others to follow their mindset and gain popularity. It is up to us to see their posts and do our research before determining whether we want to agree with their sayings.  

One single story or tweet that narrates a devastating description of unjust murders has now evolved into users creating petitions, ways to vote, and videos of how politicians exercise the issue of racism. These platforms have become more continuous because of the upcoming election between Donald Trump and Joe Biden. During the pandemic, their campaigns heavily rely on Twitter to gain more voters, and users can find past videos of their views of global issues and their decisions from which to resolve them. The current movements not highlighted in the news are more of a nonviolent social action led by various leaders worldwide. Supporters worldwide would raise candles and remain silent in memoriam of the devastating murdered victims of police brutality seems to have started more publicity and trends in 2020 alone than in 2019. The chronicles of celebrities using their platforms to change from promoting their work to current movements and acknowledging their opinion regarding #BlackLivesMatter opens citizens to follow the trends set place. It thus increases the BLM community's praise for supplying the truth behind police organizations' functions of training them to keep the country safe. 

Works Cited

BLM Chants, static1.squarespace.com/static/5005e87c84aedff146247d9c/t/57f419e0e4fcb587af0c3c40/1475615201512/ChantSheet.pdf. 

Marcia Mundt, Karen Ross. “Scaling Social Movements Through Social Media: The Case of Black Lives Matter - Marcia Mundt, Karen Ross, Charla M Burnett, 2018.” SAGE Journals, journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/2056305118807911. 

Watson, Emma. Instagram. “The Black Curriculum: How Can I Create Change?”” https://www.instagram.com/p/CBCAXnYJ0j2/ 

THR Staff. “Will Smith: ‘Racism Is Not Getting Worse, It's Getting Filmed.’” The Hollywood Reporter, 19 Apr. 2018, www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/will-smith-colbert-race-relations-obama-politics-sings-summertime-916816. 

Perrin, Andrew. “23% Of Users in U.S. Say Social Media Led Them to Change Views on an Issue; Some Cite Black Lives Matter.” Pew Research Center, Pew Research Center, 16 Oct. 2020, www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2020/10/15/23-of-users-in-us-say-social-media-led-them-to-change-views-on-issue-some-cite-black-lives-matter/.