People that actually change the world don't need to advertise it on Twitter. I have friends that volunteer in Watts and Compton every other weekend (and have done so for years) that don't need to share it on social media. I can't help but think that this current Twitter slacktivism really diminishes their genuine mission.
But the problem is that society at large, especially on the internet, apparently just sucks across the board at anything resembling actual discussion. It seems impossible to both a) give an issue national attention and b) have a remotely civil or productive public conversation about it.
I don't know what to do about it except to say we all deserve each other.
I hope we never go back to our lives like nothing happened and I feel a responsibility to make sure I never do.
Unfortunately, there is no going back here - it's partly the issues, but mostly a totally new culture of a) Twitter wars b) a new generation of people feeling that it's their 'duty' to (act out which I often believe lacks context) c) a press and pop culture climate considerably more clicky-baity and divided (just google cnn headlines from the 2000's, way more tame) d) corporate pressure to 'buy into' movements which is only going to really exacerbate the system.
I've said this before to strong disagreement but marketers jobs are to sell you aspiration - when that aspiration moves off the court and into the streets and politics, and you're gadget/shoes/apparel/cars are being sold with politics, it's not only deeply hypocritical, but it's going to come back and bite us.
I don't really see the underlying fundamentals moving in a positive direction.
People might argue that if 'the system were fairer' we wouldn't see this reaction, my response would be that there will always be something to argue about. The NYT was literally calling for 'Paw Patrol' to be cancelled due to indoctrination of children by 'coppaganda'. While this is an interesting idea, I feel there will always be threads to pull upon for people to be angry.
Nations shouldn't be so big and migrating shouldn't be that hard. Just divide and divide until the group of people stop complaining.
Racists can live with racists. Progressives can live with progressives.
There are a lot of logistic issues, though, I doubt this will ever happen.
First, it's not an accident that this happened two months into the COVID lockdowns. Seattle PD seems to be doing much better than 10 years ago, and yet nothing happened back then and we see lots of protests now. People get more anxious being afraid of the illness and from sitting indoors with 1/8th of the usual social contact, and with unclear job prospects, so they are more likely to act on this anxiety. The summer will turnt to fall, the Woodstock will end, the COVID will recede, the anxiety will subside, and the need to earn money will come front and center again.
Second, the kids will grow up and move on. Some people will never grow up, but it's not the same numbers. The next group of kids will have another cause to fight, for the simple reason that they will not be caught dead practicing anything done by the "old people". In fact a key element of all protests is the desire by the young to distance from the old in order to find their own place under the sun. This dynamic is fueling the protests now, and this same dynamic will undo the protest movement.
I appreciate your point that marketing is more about movements today that it was earlier. Still the capitalism has turned Che Guevara into a T-Shirt franchise, so it can go either way I guess.
It could still be that you're right and I'm wrong, but I think it bears listing all considerations.
There very well might be a direct connection between the upcoming election and the protests.
However - the kids will be replaced by other kids.
'Social Protest' - I believe is actually a form of normal rebellion.
As kids grow and they come into their own identities, at some point, they have to rebel against something. Kids who are abused rebel really early in life. Kids with their own identity rebel in HS. A lot of 'well-raised kids' don't rebel until University - and this rebellion takes a more intellectualized form.
'Youth in Revolt' is perennial, it's metastasizing now because of the possibility of outrage.
That said ... Baby Boomers were considerably more outspoken than their progeny so perhaps whatever comes after Gen Z will be more chill.
How exactly do your friends volunteer in this two places that just happen to show up in Dr Dre songs from the early 90’s?
He has been doing the same old Trump-y things, such as publicly praising violent crack-down of protests in places like Mineapolis as being "beautiful".
https://www.forbes.com/sites/mattperez/2020/06/11/beautiful-...