In the wake of the catastrophic Australian bushfires, many celebrities have pledged financial support to the relief efforts. But a person doesn’t need to be a millionaire to make a difference. As many WJ students know, there are many fundraisers through social media, particularly Instagram. The Pitch understands that social media can be a convenient platform for people to raise awareness for pressing issues like the fires, but activism solely through social media inhibits students from comprehending the depth of these issues or taking any further action.
It’s great that through social media, teens can donate money towards causes by just liking a photo. But if helping out is that easy, then one may just tap on their screen or repost a photo and move on without a second thought. That should not be the extent of this supposed activism.
The Pitch is not dismissing advocacy on social media as minuscule or unimportant. Of course, there is no such thing as too small a donation and something is better than nothing. Liking a photo on social media, from a legitimate money-raising account, is indeed doing something. But students must also realize that with activism must first come understanding. Before reposting a photo on Instagram about whatever is in the news, students should read up on it and expand their knowledge on the issue. For it is this that promotes long-term activism: absorbing knowledge about the roots of globalized issues and taking action—outside of a screen—to make a difference.
