GRSJ224/Tumblr Activism

A screenshot from the account vintage-chicana.tumblr.com featuring the history of Sylvia Mendez, an American civil rights activist.

Tumblr Activism is a branch of social justice found on the microblogging platform Tumblr used to share anecdotes, photos, and articles that shed light on and support social causes. The users who participate in Tumblr activism are usually between the ages of 15-34, which often connects this term to millennials, who make up roughly 50% of the blogging site's user base.

History

An Urban Dictionary entry from September 27th, 2013 titled "Tumblr social justice activist" appears to be where the term first originated. On December 19th, 2014, New York Times writer Valeriya Safronova published an article entitled "Millennials and the Age of Tumblr Activism," highlighting the platform's strong millennial presence and its anonymous-based profile option that allows certain users to use their voices without fear of being identified.

Popular Categories of Tumblr Activism

On December 3rd, 2016, the account Tumblr Fandometrics compiled a list of the most-searched social justice tags on the site, which are the following:

Feminism

Tumblr text post under #feminism

As the third wave of feminism is apparently underway, the #feminism tag on Tumblr has played a significant part in educating others about not only the rights of women, but women of colour, non-straight women, and trans women alike. The concept of intersectionality is often explored, careful not to exclude any women from the conversation.

#BlackLivesMatter

The #BlackLivesMatter movement is said to have started on Tumblr, which protests the unnecessary violence against African American communities.

Police Brutality

Tumblr image post under #policebrutality

Highly connected to the #BlackLivesMatter movement, #policebrutality is a topic that has never been as highlighted as it is in the age of social media, as it is easy to upload a picture or video of an unjustified instance with police.

Equality

The #equality Tumblr tag covers subjects such as the wage gap, marriage equality, support for the trans community, and dismantling gender roles.

Terrorism

One important movement the #terrorism tag has had online is changing the perspective of what it means to be a terrorist, such as providing information behind the recent mass shootings in the U.S. and how most were carried out by American men as opposed to an immigrant coming over the US border.

Representation

Tumblr activists are populating the #representation tag with accounts of reworked history that is not featured in a typical, colonial history textbook. This tag also features representation in the media, which is beginning to listen to its audience who is asking to see minority characters in bigger, non-stereotypical roles.

Disability

Tumblr user photo post under #disability

Tumblr's #disability section has inspired others to consider those living with disabilities as healthy, normal individuals as opposed to sick and requiring constant help. It also dismantles the idea of calling somebody with a disability an inspiration solely because of their condition.

Diversity

Like its fellow tag #representation, #diversity matters to Tumblr individuals who are frustrated with the same opinion and viewpoint that Western media pushes.

Refugees

The tag #refugees reflects a global conversation topic, started as Syrian refugees were forced to leave their country, and continued by Executive Order 13769, which is commonly referred to as the "Muslim Ban."

Reproductive Rights

Tumblr image post under #reproductiverights

Millennials are taking sex education into their own hands and researching #reproductiverights due to the inconsistency of thorough sexual health classes in public schooling, as well as the constant changes to rules and regulations of contraceptives and abortion policies all over the globe.

Crime

Under the #crime umbrella, there has been a boost in content featuring serial killers and other true crime accounts, possibly because of a curiosity to explore the human psyche and understand what to do if one encounters a potential threat. The #crime tag can also include instances of justice in the court system, or crimes against animals.

Policy

Tumblr text post under #policy

Millennials are gearing up to become a majority of the population as they age up, so understanding global #policy appears to be a movement that is on the rise.

Immigration

Tumblr users are turning the Western idea of #immigration on its head and reminding much of North America's white population that they would not be here without immigration.

Climate Change

As many baby boomers seem to deny #climatechange, millennials are keen to understand that climate change and global warming are proven fact and continue to escalate. There is hope hidden in this tag, as activists who explore it will hopefully grow up to be policy makers and replace the old-world views on the environment.

Loans

Millennials are heavily affected by the burden of student debt, and the #loans category on Tumblr reflects that. It offers posts that not only highlight current statuses of student loans, but what to do in order to make money and begin climbing out of debt.

Controversy

On July 6th, 2012, sex-positive vlogger Laci Green posted a response to a question on her Tumblr blog about a transphobic comment she made when she was "18 and ignorant," where she apologized for her past behaviour. On July 9th, 2012, Green posted that her account was on hiatus due to "'social justice' tumblr" users messaging her death threats and pictures of where she resided. Gawker's media site targeted to women, Jezebel, reacted to this incident by calling social media bloggers a "mob," while Internet culture site The Daily Dot features quotes from Tumblr users that support Green. Tumblr user hatewizard wrote "How do you [social justice bloggers] live with the overwhelming cognitive dissonance of labeling yourself as someone who fights for people’s rights while simultaneously being okay with harassing someone like this because they made a mistake" over the backlash Green received. This so-called "movement" that attempts to shut down social media activism has evolved into Anti-SJWs, standing for Anti-Social Justice Warriors, who vocally dismiss common Tumblr Activism issues such as feminism, intersectionality, and racism.

Tumblr Activism in 2017 and Beyond

According to a lengthy report by Mashable, Tumblr's usage is on the decline, but the site has maintained its hope for the future due to its overwhelming activity in the Tumblr Activism branch. On December 9th, 2016, Mashable featured another report on Tumblr, its effect on millennials during the 2016 US Presidential election, and its launch of Action on Tumblr. This "go-to safe home for agents of change" was inspired by the Tumblr Activism community who refused to be silent on issues that mattered most to them, threatened to be taken away by the strict, right-sided policies in Republican America.