I’m sure you can recall the “Black Lives Matter” or BLM movement that went viral in 2020 promoting social advocacy for African Americans. Social media pages were flooded with symbols representing the movement, and countless influencers added hashtags or slogans to their profiles. For many, supporting BLM on social media became the norm, and if you didn’t hop on to that norm, you were deemed racist. Fast forward to 2024 and you will see very few accounts that still have a black fist in their bio or on their profile picture. The swift decline in visible support for BLM raises an important question: was this movement a true step toward social change, or just another social media trend?
The Rise of BLM
The Black Lives Matter movement (BLM) gained traction following the death of George Floyd, who was murdered by a Minneapolis police officer. This brought to light concerns regarding racism, police brutality, discrimination, and racially motivated violence. Motivated by these issues, individuals sought to speak out, advocating for the equal treatment of African Americans. To spread awareness, people began to add symbols and colors to their social media accounts.
Eventually, this movement spread to social media, where the BLM movement united diverse voices across platforms, with people eager to show solidarity. Many displayed the black fist icon, shared slogans, or posted BLM-related hashtags on their feeds to signify their support.
This kickstarted a herd mentality on the internet. Fans began to pressure influencers to add a sign of their support, and, fearing backlash, influencers listened. Famous social media influencers such as Charli D’Amelio began including “Black Lives Matter” slogans in their profile pictures to seem current with the times.
The Downfall of BLM and The Resurgence of Colorism
It seemed as though the internet was anxiously waiting for this movement to come to an end. By 2021, social media interest in the movement began to fade, and many who had symbols on their profile supporting this movement quietly removed them. With this, fans began to point out to influencers who still had a BLM symbol showing their support that the movement was already concluded, according to an article in The Eagle’s Eye entitled “Black Lives Matter, but Not Because Charli Posted About It.” This response was alarming and revealed that more people were concerned with staying relevant rather than believing in the ideals of the movement.
Social media platforms seemed to agree that the movement was over, banning certain words that included Black Lives Matter. This is a similar challenge Ziggi Tyler faced while trying to update his social media bio. An article by Forbes, entitled “TikTok Influencer of Color Faced ‘Frustrating’ Obstacle Trying To Add The Word ‘Black’ To His Creator Marketplace Bio,” details his experience, stating that when he went to include phrases like “Black,” “Black Lives Matter,” and “Black support,” the app flagged the words as inappropriate content (KRISHNA and PATEL).
Shift to Inclusivity
Today, not only are sightings of the BLM movement on the internet scarce, but it seems like subtle racism has begun to re-emerge in the form of “inclusivity.” In the beauty industry, brands are now being called out for not being inclusive to all skin tones. YSL, a beauty brand company, sent out a PR package to Golloria, a TikTok influencer, to try their “inclusive” blush created for all skin tones. Not only did the blush fail to complement her dark skin color, but there was immense backlash from the internet regarding the fact that not all brands have to be inclusive.
This incident reflects a broader trend in which brands adopt inclusivity as a marketing tactic without genuinely addressing racial disparities or colorism. In this way, what was once a movement for substantial change has become entangled with superficial branding strategies, diluting its original goals.
True Change
While some individuals promoted this movement on social media, the promotion of the movement on social media itself may have been the problem. People may have viewed this movement as a trend and therefore determined that this was something that would just pass by.
Platforms like Instagram and Twitter gave BLM a global platform but also encouraged a culture of performative activism. More individuals were concerned with following a simple trend rather than supporting the ideals that the movement held.
Although BLM brought much-needed awareness, it also points out the dangers of bringing serious issues to social media. The fight against racism has, in some cases, been reduced to calls for inclusivity, an issue still worthy of attention, but one that lacks the depth of BLM’s original goals.
Works Cited
Brown, Abram. “TikTok Influencer of Color Faced `frustrating’ Obstacle Trying to Add the Word ‘black’ to His Creator Marketplace Bio.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 10 Oct. 2024, www.forbes.com/sites/abrambrown/2021/07/07/tiktok-black-creators-creator-marketplace-black-lives-matter/.
KRISHNA , DIVYA, and TWISHA PATEL. “Black Lives Matter, but Not Because Charli Posted about It...” The Eagle’s Eye, 19 Nov. 2021, ehseagleseye.com/3459/opinion/black-lives-matter-but-not-because-charli-posted-about-it/.
Ekomobong Idem
12th Grade
Bentonville
Instagram- @ekomdupee
Comments