the rise of
SOCIAL
MEDIA
activism
STUDENT VOICES REACH GLOBAL PLATFORMS Text by DOMINIQUE LASHLEY and SASHA BOUDTCHENKO
T
HE VIDEO FLICKERS TO life, revealing senior Ryan Yeung standing center screen and solemn-faced amid a wall of blue and orange text boxes. He wastes no time in recounting the story of a teen boy who saved hundreds during the Parkland School Shooting, illuminating the actions of this unknown hero with nothing more than blocks of text accompanied by the melancholy chorus of The Fray’s iconic “How to Save a Life.” Yeung is one of countless students us-
24 OCTOBER 2020
ing social media to spread awareness and advocate for change. His activism-based TikTok account, theforgottenstories.project, has gained a large presence on the platform with a goal to spread the word of lesser-known social justice cases and stories. Social media activism The increased momentum of the Black Lives Matter movement, sparked by the death of George Floyd, a victim of police brutality, fueled the recent growth in social media activism. Almost overnight, feeds
Art by XIAOHAN LI
that previously documented daily life overflowed with video clips of Floyd’s arrest and petition links to bring justice to his case. “It’s insane how many people I’ve never heard talk about social issues or BLM suddenly started posting about it everywhere,” junior Cate Barett said. According to an opt-in Verde survey of 269 students conducted in September, 53.9% of students participated in social media activism this spring. Students reposted informational posts on racism, linked resources for others to
