Marching in the Streets

"Share this, facebook it, pinterest it, tweet it..."

These modes of social networking are fast becoming an integral part of connecting with others in our Internet-centered community. Celebrities use it as promotion, people use it to broadcast their personal lives...really, what can't we use the internet for?

Courtesy of Google Images

During an interview with Deborah Siegel, a leading feminist author, media correspondent, and blogger, she explained how activism, in particular, has been affected by the social expansion that the internet provides.

"It's the new way to march in the streets," she laughed, when comparing feminism today to protests and rallies like that of the Miss America Pageant of 1968.

Activism defined the second wave of feminism (1970s-1980s). When the movement was first percolating, women banded together during the Miss America Pageant to protest the objectification of women and ridiculous beauty standards. By throwing their "instruments of female torture" (bras, curlers, fashion magazines) into a "Freedom Trashcan", these feminists showed society that the days of sexism were coming to an end ("Sisterhood Interrupted" Siegel).

Nowadays, however, although feminism is alive and well, where are the protests, the rallies, the public dissent for social change? They're online. The feminist blogosphere has exploded as internet activism is being taken more seriously after events like the Arab Spring which occurred through internet organizing.

Countless examples, like feministing.com for the modern feminist, to rookiemag.com, an online magazine started by a high school girl who wanted a creative collaborative forum to empower young girls, show how the internet is changing the face of both feminism and activism. The power to reach many sitting at one computer has revolutionized what activists can accomplish in terms of awareness and magnitude of change.

How can such activism affect other realms of social change?