The importance of Activism
Some of the best things to come out of the pandemic is the increase in awareness about real issues that are prevalent throughout our systems. We saw the resurgence of the Black Lives Matter protests and very recently, the #ReclaimTheseStreets vigil in honour of the death of Sarah Everard. Although the events that lead to these movements were tragedies, it has sparked a discussion and has led people to educate themselves about serious issues that need reform, both on a national and international level. This post is not focusing on one movement in particular, but instead is simply me sharing my opinions on why I think activism is incredibly important, and why you need to take the initiative to educate yourself about these issues.
I have always believed that Gen Z will be the generation to fix the world and is perhaps the most outspoken about societal issues than any other generation as a whole. In my (just) millennial opinion, this is because the youth have inherited all the issues created by the generations before them, but thanks to the rise of things like social media, are able to educate themselves and efficiently fight for change. You can see this through examples like the rise of young activists like Greta Thunberg and Malala Yousafzai but also from the youth vote being pivotal in voting Trump out of office. Although social media can be toxic, it has been unparalleled in its influence on activism. You can meet like-minded people through it who are passionate about the same issues you are, it allows people to crowdfund or organise peaceful protests and share opinions.
So how can you help? Being an activist may seem like an intimidating label - many people have images of protests like Extinction Rebellion chaining themselves to Waterloo Bridge in their head as what an activist is. Activism is simply raising awareness, whether it is through your social media, talking to your friends or educating yourself. The most important thing you can do is educate yourself properly. Read books, do research and make sure that your knowledge comes from reputable sources - a post on Instagram may be misleading or incorrect. Listen to people’s stories and find out what you can do to help, whether it is signing petitions, donating to charities or even attending marches and protests. If you want to take a more active role, consider volunteering at a charity or try and bring about change in your life on a smaller scale e.g. in school.
We live in revolutionary times in the midst of a pandemic and on the cusp of a climate crisis where activism is increasingly more important to have your voices, as youth, heard. You are arguably the worst affected by many of the issues we face now, so the responsibility falls to you to ensure you do all you can to make those in power hear your voice. However, make sure that you remain grounded amidst all this. The world is a scary place and whilst it is so important to educate yourself on injustices like racism, sexism and homophobia, it can be triggering to many and can seem incredibly overwhelming. Remember that amongst all the bad in the world, there is also good. As a society, we have made incredible progress in the last few years tackling these issues, but there is still far to go.
