theamericaiknow-engl1102

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Works Cited

“Activism Noun - Definition, Pictures, Pronunciation and Usage Notes | Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary at OxfordLearnersDictionaries.Com.” Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/us/definition/english/activism. Accessed 6 Dec. 2021.

Banks, Clay. “Two protestors holding signs for equality” Unsplash, 3 Jun. 2020, https://unsplash.com/photos/K6DgnExQDeA.

“Ben Shapiro Quotes (Author of The Right Side of History).” Goodreads, www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/255605.Ben_Shapiro. Accessed 7 Dec. 2021.

Bogel-Burroughs, Nicholas, and Sandra Garcia. “What Is Antifa?” The New York Times, 28 Sept. 2020, www.nytimes.com/article/what-antifa-trump.html.

“Demonstrations & Political Violence in America: New Data for Summer 2020.” ACLED, 26 May 2021, acleddata.com/2020/09/03/demonstrations-political-violence-in-america-new-data-for-summer-2020.

“How We Can Protect Truth in the Age of Misinformation | Sinan Aral.” YouTube, 16 Jan. 2020, www.youtube.com/watch?v=-7ORAKULel4.

“Morgan Freeman Quotes.” BrainyQuote, www.brainyquote.com/quotes/morgan_freeman_381671. Accessed 7 Dec. 2021.

Muller, Brandon. “Interactive Media Bias Chart Public.” Ad Fontes Media, 2 Dec. 2021, adfontesmedia.com/interactive-media-bias-chart/?utm_source=HomePage_IMBC_Video_Clip&utm_medium=OnWebSite_Link_and_Button.

Murugapiran, Shivani. “Facebok’s Facade: Unveiling the Truths of Big Tech’s Master Puppeteer.” The Bird Feed, 22 Nov. 2021, thebirdfeed.org/19292/opinions/facebooks-facade-unveiling-the-truths-of-big-techs-master-puppeteer.

“Quote by R. Buckminster Fuller.” Goodreads, www.goodreads.com/quotes/13119-you-never-change-things-by-fighting-the-existing-reality-to. Accessed 7 Dec. 2021.

U.S. Census Bureau. “Inequalities Persist Despite Decline in Poverty For All Major Race and Hispanic Origin Groups.” Census.Gov, 28 Oct. 2021, www.census.gov/library/stories/2020/09/poverty-rates-for-blacks-and-hispanics-reached-historic-lows-in-2019.html.

“10 Celebrities Who Say They Aren’t Feminists.” HuffPost, 7 Dec. 2017, www.huffpost.com/entry/feminist-celebrities_n_4460416.

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12.

“Conspiracy to defraud...”

“Fake news...”

“Incites panic...”

“Market crashes...”

“$140 Billion sinks...” 

“Sows discord...” 

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11. The Media Bias Chart created by ad fontes media ranks different platforms on two different factors: partisan leaning and factual reliability. The trend forms a triangular structure, suggesting that the more left or right leaning a network is, the less valuable and factual it is. On the other hand, more neutral reporting is associated with greater reliability of information. 

Explore your favorite newspapers or channels and see what sort of content you are exposed to! Here is an interactive chart: https://adfontesmedia.com/interactive-media-bias-chart/?utm_source=HomePage_IMBC_Video_Clip&utm_medium=OnWebSite_Link_and_Button 

I read the Wall Street Journal primarily but also the New York Times sometimes. WSJ has a bias of 5.01 (towards right) and a readability of 45.99 while the NYT has a bias of -8.03 (towards left) and a readability of of 44.72. I also like Reuters, which has a very minimal bias of -1.55 (to left) and readability of 48.81. 

Note: For usage purposes, Tumblr is a social media platform. I did not create this chart (please refer to adfontesmedia.com for more info). 

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10. A Note on Perspective

I am a supporter of the BLM Movement myself, but my comments suggesting otherwise are simply constructed to explore other points of view.

As misinformation and media bias fuels polarization, it is important for us to engage in civil discourse with those of differing perspectives in order to be productive activists.

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9. Surprise! You can support the BLM movement regardless of your race. White. Black. Brown. Purple (I’d like to think Barney is an avid supporter). 

Also... I half-agree with the sign on the left. If you are neutral in these situations it could also mean your confused or you are unsupportive of the principles of a movement. Take the party system: Republicans and Democrats have very different values and policy ideas but they both want to better the nation. Likewise, just because someone is not associated with, let’s say a feminist group, it does not mean that they are against women’s rights. 

“I wouldn't go so far as to say I am a feminist, that can come off as a negative connotation. But I am a strong female.” - Carrie Underwood

“[I don't identify as a feminist] because I think it would isolate me. I think it’s important to do positive stuff. It’s more important to be asking than complaining.” - Bjork

^Those females are not feminists because of specific connotations, does that make then anti-female? I don’t think so. I think that their perception of the label keeps them from associating with the title. Perhaps, then, people have the right to feel that way about other sorts of movements. 

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8. Check-in: What this Digital Project has evolved to become...

Okay, so I might have veered off the original plan, again. 

But here is the updated purpose of this project: 

To speak about contemporary activism. The term “contemporary” suggests that I will discuss social media, misinformation, and media biases (relatively newer developments) and their affects on activism and polarization. I will consolidate some rational arguments from both sides of activists in the debate on race relations as a specific case study. 

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7. I am going to stop calling you a white man and I'm going to ask you to stop calling me a black man.

Morgan Freeman

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We see videos of violence, alarming headlines, facts from the left and from the right? But which is which? Who is right? 

I live in suburban Atlanta, in a nice community with some nice folks. But there are many who see these videos of violence and are quick to scorn the BLM movement. 

On one side there are the white nationalists and on the other there are the “antifa” who oppose fascism. According to the New York Times, “false or misleading claims [about the group] appear first in a tweet, Facebook post or YouTube video before they are shared through community texting networks, Facebook groups or the neighborhood social networking app Nextdoor” (Bogel-Burroughs).

*sighs*

When I read articles that try to justify and humanize extremism from both sides of spectrum, I recoil. Perhaps I am naïve, but I do not think polarization helps us. That is not to say neutrality is effective when, in reality, we rarely get much done in the middle.

People can strive for what they believe in, but not at the expense of others. White supremacists cannot say that African Americans are inferior or unfounded in their claims of inequality. That is simply, factually untrue. I wonder, then, why are people threatened by a movement for racial equality?

“The race bullies win by relying on racial guilt. But collective racial guilt can only separate Americans,” says Ben Shapiro of the Daily Wire, a conservative media group. 

Here is my consensus: 

Race is discussed because racial inequalities persist and were indoctrinated since the founding of the country when such behavior was considered normal. As we developed, we found that no race is biologically inferior or superior to the other. Yet, social stigmas and biases persisted. Today, 18.8% of blacks live in poverty compared to 7.3% of whites. So yes, there is most certainly a basis for the inequality argument. However, isolating individuals into identity-oriented groups plays a role in turning people against one another. It encourages people to stereotype themselves and their neighbors. 

“If you want to cite instances of racism that we can all find and fight together that’s something that I am more than willing to stand next to you and fight [for], because that’s obviously stuff we should fight together. But when you just say that there is a white privilege out there in the ether and that by dint of birth your skin color generates for you an advantage, what you are really saying to people is that your view is less valuable because you have not experienced what I have experienced. And that is an identity argument. That’s a character argument. That’s not a rational political argument that can be taken on in any way. It is more of a cudgel and a club than it is an attempt to open a discussion” (Shapiro). 

Okay... so I am not a psychologist in any way, but this guy seems to agree that racism exists, but feels as if the narrative paints white people to be villains. He wonders, why should he be held accountable for something he did not orchestrate just because of the color of his skin? 

Whether or not one agrees or disagrees with those perspectives, they contribute to the success of a movement. All activists and causes have supporters and opposers, but civility is important. 

For the most part, the Black Lives Matter Movement is about levelling the playing field. What people oppose are the instances of violence and looting in these protests. To those individuals, I direct them to the facts. According to The Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project, “In more than 93% of all demonstrations connected to the movement, demonstrators have not engaged in violence or destructive activity” (”Demonstrations & Political Violence in America”). 

Just some food for thought... 

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5. Who are we really? a little philosophical outlook...

I am a walking contradiction, a progressive cynic, a neutral examiner, and a passionate believer in the human race. But for all my enthusiasm, I grow weary of certain means of activism.

Letters etched in bold with heart-wrenching titles call our attention. But these words are a mask to reality, to the real problems that plague our existence. In schools, we are taught the power of pathos, how we can elicit emotion and sympathy with the mere choice of words we adopt.

Anger.

Frustration.

Fury.

Pity.

A story of a particular tragedy elicits more outcry than, say, the horrors of poverty in city outskirts. Or crime. Or institutionalized barriers. Why? What does it say about our humanity that we empathize with a singular terrible incident over that of occurrences with numeric significance? Because numbers don't pull heartstrings. Perhaps then, we are not the empathetic free-thinkers we claim to be.

This idea is really important when it comes to activism because it shows how emotions are used to elicit support and allies from the general public. 

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4. Social Media and Activism - for the Greater Good?

I'd love to sit here and type away about forms of activism we already know about. Signs and good old hollering have been going on for centuries. Today, however, we face a new friend... or foe? 

Ladies and gentlemen, we have SOCIAL MEDIA.

And no, I am not talking about the cat videos or memes that I spend an embarrassing amount of time viewing, but rather the posts that make our blood boil, that make us cry, that make us furious. 

Social media has become a way for people to enlist allies and spread movements. We are more interconnected now than ever, as we share ideas and perspectives. But, we are also victims of exploitation and manipulation of our political ideologies.

Meta is the corporation that owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, and long story short, its algorithmic structures are backfiring on users. One algorithm element is the system designed to promote meaningful social interactions (MSI's). As I mentioned in an article for The Bird Feed: "This new structure had several unintended consequences, boosting more emotionally charged posts. It did not take long for political figures and influencers to identify this pattern, increasingly posting sensationalist content” (Murugapiran). 

So here's what we know: our views may not necessarily be our views, rather curated narratives by those ruling social media platforms. Take India, for instance: religious extremism was propelled by Facebook posts and groups encouraging and inciting violence. The Capitol riots, too, were promoted through Tweets and other social media platforms.

Is the same tool we use to "engage in activism" only polarizing us further? Is it causing us to hate each other with such fueled anger that we refrain from producing substantial change? 

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3. What’s an insight into activism without a little music from 2Pac himself? Systemic oppression and cyclical poverty represented through the power of rap and songwriting! 

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2. "You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete."

Buckminster Fuller

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1. What is Activism?

"I am an activist."

"I stand in solidarity."

But what does that even mean? What is that even worth? 

Activists are part of the reason we see changes in our world. They represent the power of the people, those who are not in positions of governmental authority but are passionate about a cause. 

Activists stand hand-in-hand with their peers and strive to better the experiences of those in a particular group. 

The Oxford Dictionary defines activism as "the activity of working to achieve political or social change, especially as a member of an organization with particular aims."

Today, people engage in activism through protests, marches, strikes, art, music, boycotts, lobbying, writing, and social media. Many of these forms of protest are monumental in garnering support from the people. However, activism has particular connotations in contemporary America based on who you ask.