Coming Together to Change the Social Stratosphere
During the 1960s and 70s America saw a huge growth and rise of social change throughout many aspects of civil and equal rights. Among these movements were the feminist/women’s liberation movement, the anti-war movement, civil rights and black power movement, environmental and early gay rights movements. All of these issues are still faced today on a daily basis on one of the largest scales that they have been on yet. Although there have been some changes that have come since the mid 1900s, not all of these movements have progressed to gain the equal rights they deserve and have so strongly fought for in the United States. The fight for these movements continues today and the reason they have been able to grow so immensely is due to media. The same spark that lead to the rise of these movements back in the 60s and 70s is the same spark that keeps them moving and progressing to this day. The media has allowed individuals to come together, to form groups that turn into large scale movements and organizations. Media has allowed us to form connections with people who care and devote their time to the same issues that we ourselves fight for. This spread of awareness to problems allowed for the first equality leaders and freedom fighters to take their shot at a better world, and allows all of us to do the same in today’s world.
It was the television that inspired the first social change leaders. With the television those who were oppressed were able to get a look at the outside world that they missed out on every day. Groups like white males during this time seemed to be the only ones who lived exciting and freedom filled lives. Women stayed at home, minorities were segregated and profiled, the LGBTQ+ community had not broken ground yet and many other groups were seen as unequal and undeserving. However, with the introduction of the TV into the household it gave the oppressed groups in the United States a chance to see what they were missing. It gave them shows and movies in which they saw people who looked like them fighting crime, or making it big in sports or simply achieving their goal. It allowed them to get the same news and information as everyone else, which resulted in a higher knowledge and a wider base of topics to discuss. The TV allowed people to see how successful people acted and got what they wanted. All of these things that today we think “oh it’s just a show” or “she’s just a character” meant so much more back then because it let people know that these things can and will be achieved and it can be done by you.
Today, the TV does not take first place within the influential medium world. Today’s generation of kids and young adults who are striving to make a difference grew up on the internet. The internet has been able to connect us and make our movements even more possible and has allowed for protests, marches, strikes, stand-ins and walk-outs to be organized, arranged and planned out with every detail down to the second it will begin. Our social change movements have grown so much in a span of 30–50 years and the internet is an enormous reason for this. I think that the future will remain the same way, with even more involvement.
A lot of people these days get involved in these social change movements because they see other people doing it and they realize how important it is. Matters such as the Black Lives Matter movement and the Go-Green Initiative have spread to so many lives because of the internet and that growth is something that we can expect to continue to see in the future. This generation cares about equality for everyone and preservation for the next generations and the internet helps us strive to make the world a better place.
