BY: CLAIRE KIM
For the longest time, I’ve always admired influencers as creators who love expressing themselves behind a camera and making content for their viewers. It’s not easy to put yourself out there in front of hundreds of millions of people every day, knowing that hate comments will fill a portion of your notification feed. If anything, this strength to keeps pushing themselves forward was more admirable to watch more so than the content they actually created. They proved to their following that they knew how to be confident in themselves, bold in their ambitions, and humble with the opportunities that come with being an influencer.
But, ever since recently, it seems like this sense of awareness, this desire to use their platform for the greater good of society has lost its foundation. More often than ever, influencers on Instagram, Youtube, Tiktok, etc. have shown ignorance, complete disregard for current event issues that truly matter in the world. BLM Movement? They sign off with a black screen and a meaningless hashtag. Coronavirus Pandemic? They proceed to go to big house parties and post birthday pictures all over social media. Trump announces TikTok Ban? They all appear on our feed with tears, regret, and a kind shoutout to their other social media pages.
This sequence of behavior is just ridiculous.
And what makes this situation even worse is when such influencers attempt to address serious topics, but end up embracing the problem with a “white savior complex”, showing their audience that they understand when they really don’t.
It’s ironic how our society has labeled certain people as influencers when they have made no valuable influence to the community they are a part of.
I’m not asking influencers to be perfect role-models or preachers, but I am asking influencers to take advantage of their platforms, to exercise their voice when such influence is needed instead of hiding away and reappearing when the world seems to be “back to normal”.
I think that’s the least they could do to be qualified as an “influencer”…
claire kim. 