Protest as performance

Last week, my friend introduced me to slacktivism, “the practice of conspicuously showing support for a cause (as by posting on social media or hanging a flag or sign) without taking any real steps to effect change.” Slacktivism — as per its common definition — is easily seen and acknowledged on campus: taking photos with the United Auto Workers picket sign without striking or picketing with them; reposting Instagram posts on the death toll in Gaza without writing to local government officials on the need for pro-Palestine support within the government; and even the cynical conversations that disparage the state of society without the people taking a single ounce of action. [Put a thesis here. Initially you say that activism needs performance. Then later you say it needs to make reasonable gains. Write a one sentence thesis that lays out your point and can be referred back to.]

However, the word slacktivism and similar terms like performative activism are misleading. In the case of performative activism, the term “performative” is used to define action that is fake, inauthentic and trivial. Yet, part of activism is to be performed: carried out and presented to an audience. This resonates with the definition of performative as outlined by John Langshaw Austin, British philosopher of language. He observes that certain statements, such as the phrase “I do” during a wedding ceremony, do more than convey information — they enact an event, such as the formalization of a marriage and the subsequent roles of husband and wife.

As such, performative activism and many other buzzwords require action. The way they are used, then, highlights a broader issue of the........

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