#NeverAgain- The Voices of Parkland, Florida
It’s pretty common these days to see important movements being spread through social media, such as the ice bucket challenge and the #MeToo movement, so it might not come as much of a surprise that such a movement has come for stricter gun laws. The recent school shooting in Parkland, Florida has sparked a new outrage towards the gun laws in the United States; and the people leading this front are the victims themselves. The teen survivors of the shooting that took seventeen of their classmates lives have decided that if no one else is going to do something, then they will. They’ve created movements and rallies using the very platforms they’ve grown up on: social media. You might’ve seen #NeverAgain trending online, especially Twitter. This is the hashtag the survivors have created to spread their message. It’s a two word phrase that sums up the whole meaning of their movement: to never let a tragedy like this one happen again. They’re not just tweeting either- they’ve appeared on many interviews (including a recent one on Ellen), staged walkouts, and created rallies- all to make sure that their voices are being heard. A major reason they’ve been able to do all this is through their use of social media. This makes it easier for everyone around the nation to know what is going on and to take part in the movement if they wish.
Social media has not just been useful in setting up rallies but has also allowed the survivors and other people taking part to call out false facts and conspiracies as they come. Teen Vogue recently did an article based on the recent conspiracy that accused 17 year old David Hogg of being a “crisis actor” (an actor in a faked tragedy used to achieve some goal). Students at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School have taken to Twitter to share pictures of the school’s yearbook which clearly show the names and pictures of the supposed “crisis actors.” Though this lie was easily debunked it did spread rather quickly, videos that made this claim even trended on YouTube before they were finally taken down. Some of Hogg’s friends did make light of it, however. Sarah Chadwick (@sarahchad_ ) tweeted, “To clarify @davidhogg111 can’t act to save his life. The fact that some people think he is being payed to is hilarious.”
The point of this movement was to show politicians that there is a need for stricter gun laws; some politicians, however, have seen the tragedy as a reason to arm teachers themselves. This has sparked a whole new social media movement called #ArmMeWith, where teachers list things that schools should have instead of guns. Social media has become such a prominent part of culture that it is the major reason that most modern movements have been created. This generation especially has grown up with the internet at their disposal. This isn’t the first movement made on this sort of platform and it certainly won’t be the last.
Works Cited
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.teenvogue.com/story/parkland-survivors-twitter-conspiracy-theories-crisis-actors/amp