Action in Inaction:
The How’s of Performative Activism
Written by Evadne Ng
“The opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference.” — Elie Wiesel
Activism in the LGBTQIA+ community has long existed, dating back to the 1960s. As the hostility of the public continued along with the unjust treatment, an organized movement bore fruit to support LGBTQIA+ individuals. These movements were done through public protests as well as published articles and columns.
As technology developed, so did activism— technology becoming a medium to bring activism in online spaces. LGBTQIA+ advocacies are no exception to this development, advocacies being brought online. With social media comes the spread of misinformation and trends, terms of which are related to performative activism.
What is performative activism?
Performative activism, taken from its terminology, quite literally means to perform activism. It is used to portray self-serving and self-centered activism and support. Activism participated in for personal gain, be it to boost one’s own social standing or to fit in with others. It is supporting a cause in a shallow manner, often limited to one issue or online support.
There are many forms of performative activism, having been around for years and years with the rise of social media. For example, using rainbows and the LGBTQIA+ community in your branding during Pride month. Another example is showing support only on social media, yet your actions in person speak otherwise. On social media, performative activism comes in the form of posts where one may criticize people for not speaking up.
A common denominator of performative activism is social media. With the digital age comes the greater need to be responsible on social media. It has become one of the biggest ways in which people across the globe can communicate and share regarding political, informational, and even personal issues. In the LGBTQIA+ community, it has proved to be a two-sided matter where it may allow people to speak up about their experiences, while also allowing others to twist and change people’s experiences to change a narrative. It has also people to compete and pressure one another to keep up with the latest political issues. Social media has become a “Who is a good person?” competition where actual problematic issues are used as a stepping stone for one’s character.
Why is it a problem?
Performative activism is the most hurtful form of activism, or rather, the exact opposite of what activism hopes to achieve. One might think indifference or inaction is the opposite of activism; however, indifference means to consciously not participate in activism. On the other hand, performative activism is a conscious choice to participate in activism in a self-centered manner. It proves harmful when it opens the LGBTQIA+ community to misinformation and hateful actions.
Activism aims to persuade and support, yet performative activism becomes a means of dissuading and perpetuating hate. Performative activism contradicts and erases all of the motives and changes brought about by activism. It is counterproductive, to say the least, especially in communities like the LGBTQIA+ community. It allowed people to bring more hate to the LGBTQIA+ community, while parading as something in support of them. It also creates spaces where people cannot have informational conversations about issues— painting real world problems as black and white.
Having that said, performative activism in itself is not a black and white problem. It is a problem that stems from people’s intentions and the public perception of the action. While you may mean well, a post you may post putting pressure on people to participate in spreading an issue, is what pushes people to become performative. Rather than people participating in activism due to genuine intentions, they may participate due to the pressure of needing to fit in and not be criticized otherwise. This leads to people sharing information without any substantial insights, but rather, repeats what was said. And with that repetition, comes the other interpretations of what was originally said.
Performative activism has become a prevalent underlying issue that cannot be avoided when activism comes to play. It reminds us that as we become more reliant on social media, we must also be responsible in our actions. We shouldn’t take away from what activism aims to achieve, but rather move towards supporting genuinely and truthfully. It is not the result of participating, but the motivation towards participating.
Action in Inaction:
The How’s of
Performative Activism
Written by Evadne Ng
“The opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference.” — Elie Wiesel
Activism in the LGBTQIA+ community has long existed, dating back to the 1960s. As the hostility of the public continued along with the unjust treatment, an organized movement bore fruit to support LGBTQIA+ individuals. These movements were done through public protests as well as published articles and columns.
As technology developed, so did activism— technology becoming a medium to bring activism in online spaces. LGBTQIA+ advocacies are no exception to this development, advocacies being brought online. With social media comes the spread of misinformation and trends, terms of which are related to performative activism.
What is performative activism?
Performative activism, taken from its terminology, quite literally means to perform activism. It is used to portray self-serving and self-centered activism and support. Activism participated in for personal gain, be it to boost one’s own social standing or to fit in with others. It is supporting a cause in a shallow manner, often limited to one issue or online support.
There are many forms of performative activism, having been around for years and years with the rise of social media. For example, using rainbows and the LGBTQIA+ community in your branding during Pride month. Another example is showing support only on social media, yet your actions in person speak otherwise. On social media, performative activism comes in the form of posts where one may criticize people for not speaking up.
A common denominator of performative activism is social media. With the digital age comes the greater need to be responsible on social media. It has become one of the biggest ways in which people across the globe can communicate and share regarding political, informational, and even personal issues. In the LGBTQIA+ community, it has proved to be a two-sided matter where it may allow people to speak up about their experiences, while also allowing others to twist and change people’s experiences to change a narrative. It has also people to compete and pressure one another to keep up with the latest political issues. Social media has become a “Who is a good person?” competition where actual problematic issues are used as a stepping stone for one’s character.
Why is it a problem?
Performative activism is the most hurtful form of activism, or rather, the exact opposite of what activism hopes to achieve. One might think indifference or inaction is the opposite of activism; however, indifference means to consciously not participate in activism. On the other hand, performative activism is a conscious choice to participate in activism in a self-centered manner. It proves harmful when it opens the LGBTQIA+ community to misinformation and hateful actions.
Activism aims to persuade and support, yet performative activism becomes a means of dissuading and perpetuating hate. Performative activism contradicts and erases all of the motives and changes brought about by activism. It is counterproductive, to say the least, especially in communities like the LGBTQIA+ community. It allowed people to bring more hate to the LGBTQIA+ community, while parading as something in support of them. It also creates spaces where people cannot have informational conversations about issues— painting real world problems as black and white.
Having that said, performative activism in itself is not a black and white problem. It is a problem that stems from people’s intentions and the public perception of the action. While you may mean well, a post you may post putting pressure on people to participate in spreading an issue, is what pushes people to become performative. Rather than people participating in activism due to genuine intentions, they may participate due to the pressure of needing to fit in and not be criticized otherwise. This leads to people sharing information without any substantial insights, but rather, repeats what was said. And with that repetition, comes the other interpretations of what was originally said.
Performative activism has become a prevalent underlying issue that cannot be avoided when activism comes to play. It reminds us that as we become more reliant on social media, we must also be responsible in our actions. We shouldn’t take away from what activism aims to achieve, but rather move towards supporting genuinely and truthfully. It is not the result of participating, but the motivation towards participating.