O
ne of the main
reasons for protest
is the changing
demands that young
people have of
their governments,
combined with their
ability to connect with their fellow citizens
as they use social media to expose their
voices to the world. Generation Y knows
that they are the rising force in today’s
industries. If they feel strongly enough
about an issue, they use all the resources
at their fingertips to confront the problem.
Protest demonstrators from this era are
mostly young people, and they organize
primarily through social networks.
The rise in social media brings with
it the power to contact those who
represent the establishment directly
without barriers. This has caused many
controversies for brands and celebrities.
A large social following enables one’s
ability to make a change, to reach out to a
large demographic and involve the media
around certain issues. Why wouldn’t
anyone use this to their advantage?
There are some who feel that a group of
individuals who gather to make signs and
scream at the establishment are wasting
time and energy. Access to the resources
one needs to create an impact is something
not readily available to most people.
Taking to the streets, millions of women
and men who are armed with signs is only
the beginning of the process for change.
By taking to the streets, people have been
making changes from the inside out. Many
aren’t at a march or protest to yell then
go back home and do nothing. They are
looking for what to do next. Critics say
that marches fizzle out without major
impact. But what happens when someone
understands that change happens from
the inside out. They write letters, donate,
research local community groups, and
they get petition signatures.
For some in Generation Y, who are
aware of media presentation, they take
each news piece with a pinch of salt. So
many stories are twisted by media in some
way or another. That is the ma in reason
why many young people do their own
research on the issues that matter to them
most. They tend not to trust the narrative
from companies with ties to a particular
political party.
Often, terrorist attacks are covered
based on where they occur. For example,
if the attack occurs in Britain or France,
there is wide coverage. But, if the attack
occurs in Mosul in Iraq, the coverage
is slight to none. Generation Y is more
aware of the news that surrounds them,
be it the 911 attacks or terrorist attacks in
Britain and Paris. Instead of creating fear,
these terrorist have fueled a fire under
those individuals. Instead of cowering,
Generation Y has shown their solidarity
with demonstrations, clothing protests and
online campaigns.
ver the past decade, protests
all over the world have
dominated the media, but
there is one main theme
they have in common...
freedom for the power and right to act,
speak or think as one chooses.
2017 has seen the catwalks of New York
graced with a politically-charged agenda.
O