Raising Awareness, Avoiding Performance
Protests against police violence and demanding justice for George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, Rayshard Brooks, and countless others spread across America and the world this summer. With many sequestered in their homes due to the pandemic, the fight was taken to social media, where calls to defund, disarm, and dismantle the police were far-reaching.
As Twitter and Instagram became the main arenas to disseminate information, rally the masses, and radicalize, these communication channels also presented a double-edged sword: What is the best way to use these platforms to help the cause rather than hurt it? How do you raise awareness around social justice issues without being performative? And how do white people and non-Black POC become better allies?
While the concept of performative activism isn’t new, it broadly entered the cultural zeitgeist following the murder of George Floyd. A pejorative term, performative activism refers to one using activism to boost their social capital instead of truly committing to the cause. Performative allyship is similar, where someone from a non-marginalized group shows support for and solidarity with a marginalized group, but does so in a way that isn’t helpful or is even detrimental to that group.
In fact, on June 2, people unknowingly participated in a performative act en masse, called Blackout Tuesday, where they posted a black square on Instagram as a collective action to protest systemic racism and police brutality. With the hashtag #TheShowMustBePaused, it became a visual indication of unity with Black people, where everyone was asked to “mute” themselves on social media for 24 hours in order to uplift Black voices.
Billie Eilish, the Rolling Stones, Quincy Jones, and more began to share #TheShowMustBePaused, per The Guardian. But as the plan spread, reposts of the events got distorted into a more general #BlackOutTuesday, one that not only included other industries but also other races. New rules for allies started going around Twitter, unconnected to #TheShowMustBePaused.
Indeed, the intention was pure: originally organized by two Black female music industry executives, Blackout Tuesday meant to encourage businesses to refrain from releasing music and to cease business operations at large. The movement became even more widespread as celebrities began to share black squares with the original hashtag, #TheShowMustBePaused. But the action became more distorted as it became a more general call, with the hashtag #BlackOutTuesday.
Many saw it as an empty gesture of performative allyship that harmed the Black Lives Matter movement—particularly because some users hashtagged their posts with #BlackLivesMatter or #BLM, causing those hashtags to be flooded with black squares. This drowned out critical information about protests, bail funds, and on-the-ground updates on social media platforms.
Actions like Blackout Tuesday provide a straightforward and immediate relief, particularly when you feel paralyzed and want to help. Many of the calls for justice for Breonna Taylor have also been deemed performative, particularly as her name has been profited from, used in memes, used as a hashtag, and more —and she ultimately saw no justice. So how can we do better and actually enact real change?
An easy and direct way to become a better ally is to start by donating funds. If you don’t have the financial resources to donate, sign petitions, and continue your own self-education through anti-racism resources, books, podcasts, and documentaries. You can also participate in protests and encourage your friends and family to do so. To tangibly fight oppression, we must continue to self-educate, check our privilege, and integrate activism into our lives—both online and offline.
This also means sharing what you learn, educating the people around you, and engaging in reform that affects your community. Work within your existing spheres of influence, and have discussions with family or community members, even if they’re awkward. Such conversations can be truly significant in dismantling latent racist sentiments.
True allyship is an important tool in the advancement of the Black Lives Matter movement. Don’t lose hope, beat yourself up, or even give up if you’ve participated in any type of performative activism—instead, hold yourself accountable, course-correct, and improve.
Below are some Anti-Racist Media Resources, which are a good starting point for self-education.
Books
Blackballed: The Black Vote and U.S. Democracy by Darryl Pinckney
The End of Policing by Alex S. Vitale
The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration In The Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander
From the War on Poverty to the War on Crime: The Making of Mass Incarceration in America by Elizabeth Hinton
How to be an Anti-Racist by Ibram X. Kendi.
When They Call You a Terrorist: A Black Lives Matter Memoir by Patrisse Khan-Cullors and Asha Bandele
Caste by Isabel Wilkerson
Support Semicolon, a Black-woman owned bookstore in Chicago: https://www.semicolonchi.com/
Podcasts
Code Switch
Still Processing
1619
Intersectionality Matters
Nice White Parents
Accounts to Follow
