Quotation (with page number or parag number or time stamp if video/audio):
“Racialized hashtags allow users to engage Black identity by using Blacktags in both comedic and political capacities and responding appropriately to shared Blackexperiences. However, hashtags are free for any user to access, adopt, engage, making them excellent fodder for cultural interlocutors,” (Page 2).
Comment:
Social media is an infamous platform for bullying and harassment. However, it is also a helpful way for people to stay connected. This article explains how people are able to relate to each other and make references that people will react to. Racialized hashtags are explained as ways Black people can express frustration, make connections, or just share information. A downside to these hashtags is that they are accessible to anyone. People might use them for something completely unrelated and mess up an algorithm of connecting people for the right reasons. Cultural appropriation is a more commonly talked about issue today because of social media. There is more visualization of this kind of racism. There definitely was cultural appropriation in the past, but now it can be identified and traced back to specific people with specific accounts. The issue of Blackfishing is the kind of attention it is trying to attract. People will exploit the image of a Black person to gain more views, likes, and recognition. There may not seem to be a racist intent, but it is the fact that black people have suffered extreme discrimination for many of the things people are exploiting today. For decades, black people have experienced harassment, violence, and hate just for people to use certain aspects of their culture for their personal gain. That kind of hypocrisy has to be frustrating. That’s what it is essentially. There has been so much discrimination towards many aspects of Black culture, and suddenly people are using those aspects and making it their own. While we have had many conversations about Remixing, there is a line when it comes to Blackfishing. It is racial and it is disrespectful.
Question: Would this kind of Blackfishing have happened if there were no social media platforms? How might it have been presented instead?
