If you're reading this blog, you're taking part in e-activism (or internet activism) right now. A mind changed behind a computer screen is no different from a mind changed on the street.
The Wikipedia article above addresses some of the pros and cons of e-activism, including the lack of accessibility, which is an issue close to many a feminist's heart. While I recognize that this is a legitimate and serious concern, it is also essential to recognize the power available in using the internet to reach out to others. Physical activism can be exhausting, emotionally and physically, while e-activism (like reading or writing a blog) can be carried out according to one's schedule, no matter how busy she is with school, work, family obligations or anything else. This allows many who were previously unable to take part in activism to do so.
Another advantage to e-activism is the relative safety offered by the lack of physical confrontation. Having done pro-choice activism, I know firsthand how intimidating (and sickening) it can be to find yourself face to face with those who truly believe that abortion doctors are the underground, state sanctioned Nazis or KKK of modern society.
Furthermore, engaging in discussion that takes place via fora or blog comments (as opposed to "real time" media like MSN Messenger) can allow one time to think about a response to an inflammatory or hateful remark rather than toss back a simple (and likely, satisfying at the time) "fuck you!"
Since I am just starting my blog, I would love to hear your ideas about e-activism, and what I should consider while running the blog. Please let me know in the comments!
4 comments:
As a participant in e-activism myself, I think its greatest advantage is its ability to reach a large amount of people at almost no cost. My own project has gathered 15-20 of my friends and acquaintances from around the globe, writing from various subject positions. If I were to gather 20 people from my lecture, however, the diversity of experience and breadth of knowledge would be presumably far less.
The other advantage, as you've hinted at, is the lack of regulation on the internet. If we are to believe in postnationality and the radical contestation of the nation-state, I think the internet is the only place we can point to that closely resembles such a space. Hence the proliferation of ideas and commodities like music. The downside, though, is that this allows for the wrong sorts of things to also thrive on the net, including child porn rings, mail-order bride businesses, and so on. I think as long as we don't think of the net as a liberating space uncritically, I think we can use the internet in a liberating way.
Last, the division between RL (real life) and the internet is slipping away. We don't need to think of e-activism or any sort of electronic activity anymore as anti-social or strictly the preserve of nerds in dark basements. This trend is something I'm interested in studying.. such as the sudden boom and mainstreaming of e-dating, as well as the organization of "real life" events through electronic media like blogs or portals like Facebook.
Activists who look down on e-activism and claim it is ineffective since it is not really in the "public sphere" as such (though it is..) would do well to see how far they get with protests and picketing and signature campaigns. In my experience, absolutely nowhere.
Excellent points, Jason. Especially your last one. My personal experiences with RL activism figure prominently in my turn to e-activism, namely, that it's physically and emotionally exhausting and a lot of work for very little gain. I mean, it's great that we let the anti choice student group know that they and their propaganda were not welcome on our campus, but it also drew a lot of attention to them, at a major temporal, physical, monetary and emotional cost to the organizers.
And I really like what you said about the internet being a space apart from the modern nation state, I hadn't thought of it like that myself. The fact that the internet transcends transnational borders and is available to anyone with internet access is crucial in this respect. One thing about this is that the internet is obviously dominated by English speakers as that is the major language of accessibility on it. But as internet communities and internet accessibility grows in non-English speaking regions, it's my hope that this will change as well.
I'm really interested in your project and I just wanted to let you know that I'll be keeping tabs on it throughout the summer. I know that blogs are hard to keep up, so I thought a little encouragement would be appreciated.
-Heather
Thank you Heather! I'm so happy to hear that you're interested in this project, and I hope that you'll comment as I add to the blog.
I appreciate your encouragement. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any ideas or thoughts about the blog!
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