People shit on clicktivism or online social justice shit a lot but here’s the thing:
I’ve been on this garbage website for three years as of this month and I can say with absolute certainty that a lot of what I now know about intersectionality and gender and race and class and ableism can be directly traced to this website. It’s because tumblr (and Twitter to a lesser extent because of the character limit) is a really accessible way to see mini essays explaining shit to me from tons of different perspectives.
Like you get these really digestible posts that clearly spell out either theoretical concepts or their practical applications. And I sure as shit don’t get that in school or in my daily interactions.
I feel like people shit on clicktivism because they think it stops there – with me reading stuff on a screen. But it doesn’t because I for one take the knowledge I gain here and transfer it into the world at large: my interactions with my friends and family, my conduct in the classroom, and the entertainment media I consume.
Real-world revolution has never once just fallen out of the sky, guys. It always starts with an exchange of ideas. Tumblr and platforms like it facilitate that exchange.
So like don’t ever let anyone tell you that you’re less of an activist because you started learning shit from social media. Social media is a gift to activism.