Protests since the early 20th century have come to show great significance throughout our society by bringing people together and uniting their voices as a whole. Recent protests have been some of the largest in history and still play a huge culminating role in the public eye by expressing the nonconformity views of the protesters. The fear for claiming apprehension on policies and social trends worn on their faces as they struggle for their voices to be heard. While a percentage of their goals were in the end met, a great number were confronted with a negative result.
Protest movements express grievances and initiate social reforms through the use of flaws and strengths. For many years, social protests have been capable of taking after the protesters’ demands and requests as well as undertaking perplexing, up close and personal work that produces genuine change in the government. Before social media, sorting out huge gatherings of people normally required building up an association as an essential to have some decisive method set up beforehand. This already established organization could then effectively manage the future protests.
Furthermore, supporters argue that in the age of the Internet, protesters have become even more capable of organizing and spreading their message” (“Protest Movements”). With the rapid growth of social media today, the organization of protest movements have become far simpler and with no need of oversight. Applications such as Facebook, Twitter and Snapchat, can keep us updated on what is currently happening with a single touch to a screen we are instantly transfer to a new place, getting informed and acquiring more knowledge through a device we use every minute of the day.
However, without a legitimate organization, many won’t support the movement and real change won’t occur. Protesters want change, but they also want real support. They want others to lend their hand and hold it until all falls back into place, no more fights, no more commotions, just peace and order. Mass media if used correctly could greatly influenced society by reaching large-scale of audiences. One of the great aspects of these social movements is the peaceful encounters.
How beautiful it is when masses of unrecognizable faces fighting for a shared belief. “Successful protest movements are underpinned by an influential and inspiring platform of nonviolence, supporters say, which is the key to their eventual victory. Supporters of protest movements argue that nonviolent demonstrations can elevate protesters to a moral high ground, making the wider public critical of any repression of demonstrators” (“Protest Movements”). Nonviolent protests draw attention, it makes people aware of the situation, if only for a split second.
A brief spotlight is all the protesters need to catch the public’s attention and persuade them into looking at what they’re fighting for. “Martin Luther King, Jr. ‘s Civil Rights historians credit the march and other civil rights protests for the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which outlawed segregation and unequal voting requirements, along with other institutionalized civil rights violations. King strongly adhered to the principle of nonviolence” (“Protest Movements”).
The goal is to gain another voice through the process, even when the public may want to turn their backs and blind themselves over the matter that is currently happening in society. Social movements have become a prominent part of today’s society. The early 1960s showed a great contrast between two powerful civil right leaders, Martin Luther King and Malcolm X. King works prominently were based on nonviolence, at the same time Malcolm X was all about force and fights to win what was needed for equality.
In order to understand the issue at hand, protesters have to put their perspectives aside and look at both the benefits and ill effects for protest movements. In many cases, these movements have shown negative end results. First and foremost, protesters see many uprisings occur almost every single week, but it is good to still see people unite and outcry on matters that they feel are not being fairly treated. The issue becomes that excessively unfocused disturbances can make a group of protesters lose track of what they’re really fighting for:
Protests reached their zenith during the civil rights movement of the 1960s when a group of literally disenfranchised people were able to demonstrate their grievance in a very visible way. People dressed in their Sunday best quietly marched, listened to speeches, and questioned why the country wasn’t living up to its creed that all men are created equal… Eventually, though, this device was expropriated for niche causes and by more radical elements. They became a nuisance and, sometimes, violent.
Mostly, though, they were silly and generally attended by the usual suspects, who would show up to protest whatever (“Protest Movements”). People want change, but forget that quality is better than quantity. Less protests with better organization would double the effectiveness resulting in a better outcome. When protests happen as much as they currently are, the meaning is taken away because it often becomes the trend without the passion behind the cause. This is what makes noise, non-audible voices chanting together nonsense words from incoherent minds.
Designed to provoke, wreak havoc, and create chaos… They want the Internet to be flooded with images of police officers pepper spraying them, running them over with scooters, kicking, punching, dragging and beating them up” (“Protest Movements”). Chaos is what they get when things don’t start going the direction they had anticipated, the gatherings in the public areas start to rapidly diminish and the ones left behind are left with rage and anger and forget what a peaceful movement is really about. They want to bring awareness, but the nightmare occurs when they try to shove it down the other’s throats.
In addition to only showing a biased example through social media to get more supporters, targeting the ones who are not aware of the current situations in society. Thus, protest movements are inevitable but that does not mean they to be unbearable. Learning ways to share ideas through an open mind without being subjective, would improve the aftereffects of the situations. Protest movements have and will be continuing to be a way for people to come together and express their views through social reforms. Their hope is matched by the desire to change.